Haiti Hospital Appeal
Country : Haiti
Description:
LATEST UPDATE – 23 June 2013 – Completed project images
Update – June 2013 – The Haiti Hospital Appeal projects are COMPLETE!
We are pleased to inform you that we have made the final payment of $12,500 to HHA for the implementation of the Emergency Power Generator for the maternity ward. This is the last of the various projects with the Haiti Hospital Appeal project, so the Cuba 2010 funds all all now allocated and the projects are complete!
Update – November 2012
The deposit has been paid for the materials, which will be shipped from the USA on the next ship!
Update – October 2012
It had been planned that the remaining funds from this The Revolutionary Ride, Cuba 2010 challenge would be used to pay for an essential blood bank. Unfortunately, due to problems with various authorities in Haiti (totally out of G4G’s control), this is not now possible.
Therefore, we have made a payment to the Haiti Hospital Appeal to fund an Emergency Power System for the Maternity Neonatal Unit. This system will ensure constant power, even in times of power outages in the main system. With much specialised equipment, and much of it life-sustaining, it is essential that power is not out in the neonatal and maternal surgical units for even a few minutes.
These funds will allow the system to be ordered from Miami and installed. The balance of the funds will be sent to Haiti on receipt of the charity’s completion report.
UPDATE – April 2012
After an extended period for customs clearance, the medical equipment for the new maternity wards at the Cap Haitian Hospital is now in place. The new maternity and pediatric units will ultimately serve up to 60,000 women and children per year. This project is now complete and all payments made.
The remaining $25k earmarked for this project will now be used to establish an essential blood bank at the Cap Haitian Hospital. The need for blood transfusions can be life saving for maternity and premature babies. The blood bank will also be used for the whole hospital including surgery and rehab. Once again, we will be working with HHA to establish the blood bank.
- This project proposes to construct a blood bank for the hospital, which will benefit all aspects but will especially support the work of the recently-opened maternity unit in situations where complicated births require surgical interventions.
- The hospital serves the city of Cap Haitian, which has a population of 180,000 and was one of the areas worst effected by the earthquake in early 2010. The hospital is open to any patients from this geographic area for the services it provides. The newest service being offered is a maternity and paediatric unit (part-funded by G4G), which is targeting to serve 13,440 women and 48,480 children each year, when operating at full capacity. Of the 1,500 estimated babies delivered at the unit annually, it is expected that 10-15% will be complicated deliveries, requiring blood transfusion.
- With the opening of the new maternity and paediatric unit (part-funded by G4G), the need for a blood transfusion service is essential and life-saving, especially for the neo-natal and premature baby unit. Premature babies can often suffer from anaemia, sickle-cell, which require blood transfusions soon after birth to increase their chance of survival. Surgical interventions for deliveries will also require blood transfusions in many cases, such as caesarean sections or a ruptured placenta, thus increasing the chances of survival of both the baby and the mother in complicated cases.
- Children brought to the hospital with severe malnutrition or sepsis could also be treated with blood transfusion, as a life-saving intervention. Dr Toussaint, who is the medical director of the maternity unit, gives an example of a teenage boy at JUH (Justinian hospital – the Government hospital in Cap Haitian) who had hepatitis, severe anaemia and low platelets but died due to a lack of blood available.
- Aside from paediatric and maternity, the blood bank will also be useful for whole hospital, including general surgery and rehab.
- In addition to this, the spinal rehabilitation unit, children’s home, and static and mobile clinics, will all also be able to access this project, which will increase beneficiaries.
- A solar power system has recently been installed at the hospital, allowing for the safe and continuous operation of the blood bank.
- The Red Cross will provide professional oversight, as it is responsible for the coordination of the blood transfusion service throughout Haiti; this blood bank will join that network, which is independently funded for it’s ongoing running costs.
- It is expected that construction can begin once authorisation is formally received from the Red Cross.
UPDATE – February 2012
Great news! All equipment has now been delivered and all documentation has been received and approved by G4G ready for the final payment to be made!
UPDATE – October 2011
The new Rehabilitation building is now complete and the Maternity 2 building is also nearing completion. Meanwhile, the 2 containers of equipment have arrived in Port au Prince, so the hospital now has the major task of reorganisation to do to move all the rehab function into the new building and then set up the new maternity and Paediatric wards . . . all very exciting and we’re delighted to be able to help Haiti in their continuing troubled times.
UPDATE – June 2011
Haiti Hospital Appeal, a UK charity, are working with the Haiti health department to build a range of health services in and around Cap Haitian, Haiti’s second largest city.
The HHA are requesting $475,00 to help procure vital start-up equipment for the Maternity Service at two new hospital units, the first of which opened in the last quarter of 2010 and the second to open in Summer 2011. It is anticipated that these facilities will assist with 2,000 births annually.
To date, G4G have paid $23,750 to HHA.
A recent video of Haiti Hospital Appeal is on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJM-aeZf0Jk&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL
ORIGINAL INFORMATION
- This appeal is run by a UK-based Board of Trustees, while the Haiti Hospital has a separate Operational Board consisting of individuals from medical, clergy and professional services.
- The HHA is building a large 36 acre medical campus, L’Hospital CBH, at Quatier Morin, Haiti.
- G4G hope to fund (or partially fund) Pediatric Unit 2, which includes 2 wards of 8 beds each for children aged 8 and above. The unit is planned to open in 2012. We hope that we will have sufficient monies to fund either the girls or boys ward
- Pediatric Unit 1 and the Maternity Ward were completed earlier this year and both continue to be used for emergency aid following the 2010 earthquake.
- The Spinal Injury Unit is also housed within Pediatric Unit 1.
- HHA, coupled with the American Baptist Churches of NY, are coordinating the funding and building of the facility.
- No government funding is available for either build or operational costs, which will be covered by charges for services.
- Funding for the building works to date has been from organisations such as Cyan International, American Baptist Churches of NY, Direct Relief International, White Ribbon Alliance and HHA.
- Locally, NGO’s involved in the hospital project include Healing Hands Haiti, United Nations, Crossroads International and Konbit Sante. Kings College London and White Ribbon Alliance are also assisting to recruit and train medical staff.
Associated Challenges:
