As previously mentioned, we have a personal connection to this wonderful organization, and, well, I’ll let him speak for himself:
My name is Michael Barthman; I am a pre-med and English major at the University of Minnesota. I work as an Emergency Medical Technician on the outskirts of Minneapolis. In June of 2009 I spent a week in Haiti’s southern peninsula, 25 miles west of Port-au-Prince, providing medical relief to Leogane and its surrounding communities, a population of around 300,00 Haitians, in the form of mobile clinics. The trip’s underlying purpose was to begin relationships with these communities so that consistent healthcare could eventually become a part of everyday life.
I walked beside a young mother wearing flip-flop sandals as she carried her six pound, six month old infant down the side of a mountain so we could place her in contact with the Children’s Nutrition Program. I saw how the hair of malnourished children turns from black to rusty red, and how their bellies distend into a grossly endearing shape. Children would arrive to clinic with spasms induced by tetanus—described by one of our doctors as, “awesome in the way two trains colliding is awesome.” Children with extra fingers and toes, never removed at birth, were common. We treated a twelve-year-old girl weighing two-thirds of her age expected weight. As a toddler she contracted strep throat, but because it went untreated, it traveled into her heart and ate away portions of the valves. A cardiologist evaluated her soon after. We were too late in stopping a disease that had become fatal in Haiti, but was easily treated everyday in the United States.
The mother of the six pound, six month old infant made it down the mountain, but the child passed away soon after. Again, we were too late. That same sensation overcame me when I heard the news and saw the photos of the earthquake in January. One of our teams had arrived home from Leogane three days earlier. Leogane is now leveled. The existing hospital, which was preparing to be re-opened, has been demolished along with nearly every home and business in the city.
The Community Health Initiative has established a fifty bed mobile hospital in Leogane through a donor’s tremendous generosity. It is a beacon of hope for the community’s short and long term healthcare. The hospital is treating around 300 patients every single day—amputations, skin grafts, fractures, and all types of injuries are being repaired and monitored. Leogane hasn’t experienced this level of healthcare in years; it’s heartbreaking to know such a shocking event is what finally brought enough international attention to Haiti to begin making necessary strides in healthcare. The most important aspect is that we can continue the progress we are presently making. The largest hurdle is the reality that CHI needs to operate at 1200% of its original projected budget prior to the earthquake. We are subsisting purely on good will, generous donations, and the hard work of our dedicated volunteers—holding to the belief that we won’t need to say we were too late ever again.
Some pictures taken during Michael’s experience in Haiti:
More about World Wide Village’s Community Health Initiative.
