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Update from Haiti - Jan 23, 2010 
As you know, women's health care needs can easily be overlooked in the response to complex humanitarian disasters, such as the earthquake in Haiti. However, crisis situations often exacerbate existing women's health needs, making routine women's health events like childbearing into matters of life and death. For this reason, it is vital to make responding to women's unique health needs a priority in the overall crisis response. Circle of Health International (COHI) is dedicated to responding to women's health needs in crisis and conflict situations. We were able to move quickly into Haiti after the earthquake struck, and we have more teams leaving shortly as part of a coordinated response to the earthquake. We need to do everything we can to prevent more deaths, especially preventable deaths of women. Our first team arrived in Jimani, Dominican Republic on Tuesday, January 19th and were put to work as soon as they landed. They have been helping out at a hospital on the Dominican Republic side of the border, where the most severely injured earthquake survivors are being brought by ambulance for life-saving treatment. This team has been working with little sleep, responding to critical health needs. Currently, the team has entered Fonds Parisien, Haiti and is working with a clinic in the area to respond to the needs of the incoming refugees. They are also working around the clock, and have been able to focus more specifically on women's health and needs. In addition, they are also conducting a quick assessment of women's health as displaced persons continue to flood the area, straining already thin resources. Though communication with our teams in the field has been spotty, we have been able to keep in contact, and we expect more updates soon. We have a third team that hit the ground on Saturday, which will include an epidemiologist, an MD and a certified nurse-midwife. This team will be focused on conducting a Rapid Health Assessment, to collect information about the overall health status of women in Haiti and identify the most pressing women's health needs. This information will be shared with other relief agencies, and UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, and will be used to make sure that the overall relief effort effectively addresses women's health needs. This information will be vital to COHI, too, as we plan our next steps in Haiti. We will keep you updated. COHI has received an outpouring of support from generous people wanting to donate their time and skills as volunteers, and we have a very talented pool to draw from. It's been very heartening to know how many concerned and caring people support our work! However, we are still very far behind our fund-raising goal, and we badly need funds to care for the women of Haiti, conduct our assessment, and ensure the safety of our teams. Please consider donating, hosting or organizing a fund-raising event and encouraging your friends and colleagues to donate to COHI. To make a donation, or learn more about how to host a COHI fundraiser, please visit www.cohintl.org. |