53 Pallets of Medical Aid Arrives at Port-au-Prince Warehouse

Staff in Haiti processing inventory for tailored deliveries to partners

March 11, 2010 

Direct Relief's staff in Haiti has received a 53-pallet shipment of medical aid, valued at more than $2.9 million (wholesale), and is processing it into smaller deliveries for various partners as needed. Navigating complicated logistics, the team in Haiti is working to ensure that healthcare providers are getting the medical supplies and materials they need to care for people affected by the earthquake. See an interactive map of aid Direct Relief has provided to Haiti for the earthquake response.

Staging materials at the Port-au-Prince secure warehouse enables the emergency response team to provide requested materials on a quick turnaround. Working with a small but dedicated crew, the Haiti warehouse team is providing a necessary service to partners whose time is best spent providing care, instead of managing large, bulky shipments on their own.

More Than $3.4 Million in Aid Sent to Haiti This Week

March 3, 2010 

Direct Relief has sent more than $3.4 million (wholesale) in medical material aid to Haiti this week.

Hôpital Albert Schweitzer (HAS) is receiving more than $510,000 of medical aid it has specifically requested to help care for Haitians affected by the earthquake. Materials include wheelchairs, braces, antibiotics, and surgical supplies, among others. The hospital in Deschapelles, north of Port-au-Prince, has surgical and orthopedic wards, and it has been caring for large numbers of people injured in the earthquake.

To help supply other partners treating earthquake patients, Direct Relief has airlifted a shipment of more than $2.9 million (wholesale) in medical material to its secure warehouse in Port-au-Prince. The 53-pallet shipment includes valuable, needed items such as wheelchairs, wound-care supplies, analgesics, and antibiotics. Staff in Haiti is managing inventory there and delivering aid in quantities carefully tailored to partners’ needs. Having essential medical materials readily available allows healthcare providers to concentrate on their patients' needs instead of spending valuable time managing supplies.

Care for people injured in the earthquake continues; as many Haitians are left homeless and the rainy season approaches, an increasing health concern is to prevent disease outbreaks in camps. People living in situations with compromised water and sanitation are at risk for diarrheal diseases and other conditions that can be life-threatening if not treated. As partners identify needs for patient care, Direct Relief continues to supply them with materials they need to provide care to vulnerable people.

More Than $1.3 Million in Needed Medical Aid Sent to Haiti

February 26, 2010 

More than $1.3 million in medical aid has been dispatched over the past week to partners in Haiti caring for people in need. As the rainy season approaches, preventing disease and infection among those living in crowded camps and in flimsy shelters is a growing health concern.

Christian Aid Ministries (CAM), which operates medical clinics in Haiti, received this week a shipment of needed medical aid valued at more than $1.1 million (wholesale). The consignment included needed antibiotics, analgesics, wound-care products, IV equipment, and slings and braces for broken bones. CAM staff is making medical mission trips to remote villages to care for people injured in the earthquake who don’t otherwise have access to effective medical treatment.

Child Hope International (CHI), which operates an orphanage and an adjoining clinic in Haiti, is a new partner to Direct Relief. CHI is receiving a consignment valued at $51,740 (wholesale) of medical material to support its care for orphaned Haitian children which includes antibiotics, surgical supplies, anesthetics, and other pharmaceuticals.

Physicians from Sri Sathya Sai, a partner based in India with satellite locations around the world, are staffing a medical camp in Haiti to care for the injured and displaced. Direct Relief has supported their efforts with a shipment of nearly $165,000 (wholesale) in medical material, including antibiotics, medicines to treat asthma, analgesics, anesthetics, and oral rehydration products, and more.

As the recovery phase of the earthquake response continues, Direct Relief is committed to providing the medical materials our partners need to provide quality healthcare for the thousands of Haitians whose lives and health continue to be affected by the earthquake.

Direct Relief Delivers Critically Needed Insulin to Haiti

Product requires tight temperature controls, careful handling

February 18, 2010 

Direct Relief delivered on Monday a total of 6,000 vials of insulin valued at $240,318 (wholesale) to two Haiti facilities treating diabetic patients: Partners in Health (PIH) and Hôpital Albert Schweitzer (HAS).

Specifically requested by physicians from PIH and HAS, this donation is especially significant for the many people with diabetes in need of insulin in Haiti. Insulin requires specialized shipping a tightly controlled temperature range from its point of origin in the United States to cold-storage facilities in Haiti hospitals, which makes it challenging to handle. Direct Relief’s operations and program staff at its Santa Barbara headquarters coordinated efforts closely with staff on the ground in Haiti to ensure that this delivery was received immediately upon arrival at the Port-au-Prince airport and was dispatched promptly to hospitals.

Serious health issues arise for insulin-dependent people with diabetes who do not have an adequate supply of insulin to manage their blood sugar levels, including diabetic ketoacidosis, which can lead to coma or death if untreated. This generous donation was provided by Eli Lilly and Company, which manufactures these insulin products.

Direct Relief has recently expanded its capacity to deliver temperature-sensitive medicines to better serve the medical needs of the people of Haiti, and others in great need around the world. Direct Relief constantly works to expand its ability to deliver needed medicines for vulnerable people.

Staff in Haiti Supporting Short- and Long-Term Recovery

February 12, 2010 

Direct Relief staff in Haiti has been pursuing all channels to help Haitians recover from last month’s devastating earthquake, and is working to fill immediate and long-term needs. This week, the team has:

• Delivered by helicopter a shipment of medical aid to Hôpital Albert Schweitzer in Deschapelles, north of Port-au-Prince. The well-established hospital has a surgical and orthopedic practice, and has been treating many patients injured in the earthquake.
• Delivered three truckloads of much-needed intravenous solutions and supplies (donated by Baxter) to St. Damien Hospital, which has been caring for adult and pediatric patients.
• Assisted Partners in Health (PIH) with inventory control and resupply of needed materials, which allows PIH staff to focus on patient care.
• Participated in the Disability Working Group, a consortium of governmental and nongovernmental agencies that is establishing a long-term care strategy for the estimated 2,000 to 4,000 amputees since the earthquake.

Direct Relief staff has also been identifying potential new partners to receive medical aid, including the University of Miami field hospital; the Quesquaya School, which is operating as a logistics hub for medical staff and supplies; Centre de Sante Bernard Mevs; and La Hopital Notre Dame de Lourdes.

From its secure warehouse in Port-au-Prince, Direct Relief continues to deliver medical aid to partners as they specifically request.

Direct Relief Staff in Haiti Delivering Medical Aid to Partners

February 9, 2010 

This week, Direct Relief staff in Haiti has been distributing critically needed medical material aid from its secure warehouse outside Port-au-Prince to partners caring for people injured in last month’s earthquake.

On Monday, the team disbursed medical aid to partners Real Medicine Foundation and Ananda Marga Universal Relief Team (AMURT), and delivered a truckload of specifically requested materials and medicines to St. Damien Hospital. With partners operating at capacity to care for patients, Direct Relief’s carefully targeted deliveries save healthcare providers valuable time managing inventory.

Direct Relief staff in Haiti is also working to identify additional new partners who are caring for the earthquake injured but are lack needed resources. Today the team is in Leogane to complete an assessment of several hospitals it has been in contact with.

More than $16.3 Million in Medical Material Arrives at Direct Relief’s Haiti Warehouse

Staff on the ground managing inventory, logistics to equip partners caring for Haitians in need

February 5, 2010

Direct Relief staff in Haiti received this week more than 16 tons of medical material aid, which will be managed and allocated to partners through Direct Relief’s secure warehouse outside Port-au-Prince.

Valued at more than $16.3 million, the medical material includes a range of critically needed items, from surgical supplies and equipment to antibiotics and pain medications. With partner healthcare providers focused on caring for their many patients, Direct Relief’s expertise in inventory management provides invaluable support for their work. Direct Relief staff on the ground can carefully allocate aid to meet partners’ specific needs, saving them time and effort in processing and storing bulk shipments.

Direct Relief staff will be in Haiti for an extended period to receive, process, and deliver aid to our partners so they can continue to care for the many Haitians who have been injured in the quake. The secure warehouse is fully equipped to receive large shipments, with forklifts and a loading dock.

While news reports have indicated that aid delivery has been hampered into Haiti, Direct Relief has met this challenge through collaborations with corporate supporters and partner teams. Corporations like FedEx and Baxter have facilitated the delivery of large aid shipments to help resupply partners’ stocks, while many carefully tailored deliveries through trusted longtime partners have placed medical aid directly into the hands of healthcare providers caring for Haitians in need.

Two New Aid Shipments En Route to Haiti

Direct Relief staff in Port-au-Prince managing logistics, supplies to partners

February 2, 2010 

Two new shipments are en route to Haiti, destined for Direct Relief partners Hôpital Albert Schweitzer (HAS) and Justinian University Hospital (JUH). Located in Deschapelles and Cap-Haitien, respectively, these facilities are treating large numbers of people injured in the earthquake, and are receiving medical aid they have specifically requested to continue their crucial work.

HAS is a full-service hospital with an orthopedics practice, which has made it integral to the earthquake response. It is receiving more than $266,000 (wholesale) of targeted medical aid, including pain medications, antibiotics, medicines to treat diabetes, and more. Founded in 1957, HAS serves a patient base of about 300,000 people on a regular basis. North of Port-au-Prince, it has received an influx of patients since the earthquake.

JUH, on the north coast of Haiti in Cap-Haitien, has also received a large number of patients injured in the earthquake as people have migrated out of the damage zone.  It is receiving a consignment valued at more than $66,000 (wholesale), containing surgical supplies, wound-care supplies, antibiotics, and other needed medicines to support its expanded patient care.

Direct Relief staff members are on the ground in Haiti managing logistics and resupply on behalf of our partners there. This assistance allows partner healthcare providers to focus on treating patients, and means they get the supplies, medicines and equipment they need in an expedited manner.

More Than 16 Tons of Medical Aid Departs for Haiti Today

FedEx airlifted shipment will resupply health facilities working around the clock to care for patients

January 29, 2010

More than 16 tons of medical material aid has departed Direct Relief’s warehouse today for Haiti, via donated airlift by FedEx. Destined for Port-au-Prince, the large consignment will provide critically needed medicines and medical supplies so Direct Relief’s partners can continue to care for the huge numbers of people injured in the earthquake.

The shipment, which includes adult and pediatric antibiotics, analgesics, surgical equipment, and sterile-wound supplies, will be received and managed in Port-au-Prince by Direct Relief staff on the ground there. Brett Williams, director of emergency response, is returning to Haiti Saturday following his initial 10-day deployment there. He and two other staff members will manage inventory and help supply key partners in Haiti from Port-au-Prince. This strategy will enable Direct Relief to respond immediately to partners’ needs as they arise.

FedEx’s support for this large consignment reflects its strong commitment to Direct Relief’s emergency response in Haiti.

“Our partners are working literally around the clock and at capacity to treat the many people injured in the earthquake,” said Williams. “They desperately need these supplies, so this airlift will go a long way to support their critical work.”

Before today’s shipment, Direct Relief had already provided more than $6 million in medical aid for several partners treating earthquake survivors.

Direct Relief Aid to Haiti Tops $6 Million

Medical supplies, medicines, and equipment delivered to partners caring for patients

January 27, 2010

Since the earthquake struck January 12, Direct Relief has sent more than $6 million in medical aid to our partners on the ground caring for the many injured. The scenes have been heart-rending, and Direct Relief has been supporting several partners in Haiti working around the clock to treat the injured. Key partners include:

• Partners in Health, which is operating a temporary facility out of the partially damaged General Hospital in Port-au-Prince.
• St. Damien Hospital, a full-service pediatric facility in Port-au-Prince, where patients of all ages spilled out into every square inch of the courtyard to receive care.
• Hôpital Albert Schweitzer, a surgical hospital in Deschapelles with orthopedic surgical capability. The hospital has been caring for a large number of people injured in the quake.
• Justinian University Hospital, a full-service facility in Cap-Haitien, which has received an influx of patients escaping the damage zone and seeking medical care.
• MOSCTHA, a humanitarian group providing aid to Haitian refugees in the Dominican Republic. It dispatched a mobile medical van to the Haitian border to assist earthquake survivors streaming out of the damage zone.

In response of challenging logistics in Haiti, Direct Relief sent two staff members to Port-au-Prince immediately after the quake struck to manage logistics and ensure delivery of critically needed materials to our partners. On the heels of that advance team’s successes, a second team is deploying to Haiti this weekend to continue those efforts.

In addition to extraordinary support from FedEx in transportation and logistics, Direct Relief has identified and equipped groups that have chartered planes to “hand-deliver” aid.

• J/P Haitian Relief Organization, a team of 20 doctors specializing in emergency and trauma medicine, have dispatched critically needed consignments on chartered planes, for use at Partners in Health’s emergency facility.
• Yayasan Bumi Sehat (YBS), an Indonesia-based healthcare organization with expertise in midwifery and obstetrics/gynecology, set off for Jacmel, Haiti, with Direct Relief materials in hand to assist the injured there. YBS responded extensively to the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, and is a trusted partner in emergency response.

Direct Relief is also developing long-term recovery plans for the earthquake response. Experience with other earthquakes (China 2008, Pakistan 2005) proves that rehabilitation and prosthetic support will be crucial in the coming months to help Haitians recover their mobility and independence after amputations and other traumatic injuries. Plans are underway to provide appropriate support.

Direct Relief has a deep commitment to help the people of Haiti recover from this devastating event; it informs all of our actions. Donors of all types, from corporations to foundations, to individuals, have been extremely generous in supporting Haiti relief. Learn more about them here.  

Sterilizing Equipment Sent to Port-au-Prince Today
January 26, 2010 

Eight Midmark autoclaves are on their way to Partners in Health’s facility in Port-au-Prince, dispatched today from Direct Relief’s warehouse. J/P Haitian Relief Organization is delivering the sterilizers to PIH’s facility, and has been sending teams of doctors to Haiti with compact, targeted provisions of medical aid via chartered plane.

Valued at $15,000 (wholesale), the autoclaves have untold value in preventing infection in patients. Sterile medical and surgical instruments enable doctors to provide better, cleaner care for the huge numbers of people injured in the Haiti earthquake. 

This targeted provision is designed to meet the immediate needs of our partners who are on the front lines caring for patients.

Direct Relief Procuring $130,000 in Requested Medicines for Haiti
January 23, 2010 

Direct Relief is procuring more than $130,000 in medicines specifically requested by our partners on the ground in Haiti. Outside of the organization’s standing inventory, this initial procurement includes local anesthetics, analgesics (acetaminophen, ibuprofen), antibiotics (ceftriaxone, amoxicillin, doxycycline), antiparasitic agents, and water purification tablets.

Our partners have reported that primary health concerns are infection-control and prevention for the many wounded and displaced.  For patients receiving treatment for their injuries, basic medicines like analgesics and antibiotics play an important role in their recovery.

With more than 609,000 people in Port-au-Prince alone living in makeshift shelters and tent camps, infectious-disease control is an issue. In crowded living conditions with compromised water and sanitation systems, people can contract diarrheal diseases like cholera, which quickly becomes fatal if dehydration sets in. Water purification tablets provide safe drinking water and help prevent the disease’s spread. 

This first round of purchased items will supplement the more than $3.4 million (wholesale) in emergency aid provided to Haiti from the organization’s standing inventory. Direct Relief is in close touch with partners caring for Haitians affected by the earthquake and is committed to responding to needs as they develop. Donations from individuals, foundations, and companies help make this work possible.

$1.1 Million in Aid Departed Today for Haiti

January 22, 2010 - 4:30 pm

Today, Direct Relief has dispatched three shipments valued at more than $1.1 million total (wholesale) to support our partners’ care for people injured in the Haiti earthquake.

St. Damien Hospital in Port-au-Prince is treating a huge numbers of people injured in the quake. Direct Relief has sent St. Damien a consignment of medical material aid valued at almost $969,000 (wholesale), containing needed medicines, supplies, and equipment.

On the outskirts of Port-au-Prince, St. Damien sustained minimal structural damage, and is just southeast of the airport. “We are managing the countless people with severe and serious wounds coming to our hospital,” said Robin Schwartz, assistant director of the hospital. “We are doing our best for them, under trees and in the parking lot with diminishing supplies. We work through the night and beyond.” The 120-bed pediatric hospital has an emergency room, a surgical ward, a pharmacy, radiology services, and a warehouse on its campus. St. Damien was able to use its 2009 Hurricane Preparedness Module  (emergency medical material) for its earthquake response.

Hôpital Albert Schweitzer (HAS), a 130-bed surgical hospital in Deschapelles, reports that it has been receiving a stream of patients from Port-au-Prince.  HAS offers specialty surgeries including orthopedics, outpatient services, pre-natal care, and more. It is receiving more than $167,000 (wholesale) of medical material aid to support its care for people injured in the earthquake.

Yayasan Bumi Sehat (YBS), a longtime Direct Relief partner based in Indonesia, is sending a team of midwives to Haiti to operate a temporary clinic outside Port-au-Prince. YBS has extensive experience in midwifery, obstetrics/gynecology, primary care, and emergency response medicine from its work following the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004. YBS anticipates seeing 100 patients a day and is planning to staff its clinic for two months. Direct Relief’s consignment, containing basic medical supplies and materials valued at nearly $1,200 (wholesale), will travel with the YBS team to Haiti.

Targeted Medical Aid Equips Partner Teams Heading to Haiti

Direct Relief has equipped two partner groups sending medical mission teams to Haiti with needed medical material aid. These teams will provide care to the many people injured and in need since the quake stuck.

J/P Haitian Relief Organization, a team of 20 doctors experienced in emergency and trauma medicine, is flying to Haiti over the next few days to help care for patients. Direct Relief has sent them specifically requested medical material and medicines, including antibiotics, analgesics, and supplies valued at nearly $106,000 (wholesale). The doctors are traveling to Haiti via chartered plane, and will carry the medicines and supplies with them.

Christian Aid Ministries (CAM), which has supported the healthcare system in Haiti for more than 20 years, has also received a shipment of antibiotics, anesthesia, and medical supplies valued at more than $27,000 (wholesale) to accompany a team departing Saturday for Haiti. The materials will help supply a clinic in La Source and field clinics, depending on where the need is greatest.

CAM is also receiving a large shipment of medical material, valued at almost $1.8 million (wholesale), ranging from surgical instruments and exam gloves to personal care products and antibiotics. CAM will stage the material at its warehouse in Pennsylvania and send it to Haiti as logistics channels permit.

Partners in Health Shipment Arrives in Port-au-Prince
January 20, 2010 - 3 pm 

Brett Williams, director of emergency response, sent this photo today from Port-au-Prince, where a large consignment for Partners in Health has been received. The 13 pallets of medical material aid (one of which is shown here) will help PIH's staff treat people injured in the quake at its facility in Port-au-Prince.  

Delivery to Santo Domingo to Help Quake Refugees on Border

January 19, 2010 – 12:30 pm 

Direct Relief is deploying a consignment of medical aid tomorrow for The Socio-Cultural Movement of Haitian Workers (MOSCTHA), a partner based in the Dominican Republic. MOSCTHA sent its medical van to the border region Sunday to serve as a mobile medical clinic for refugees from Port-au-Prince.

The consignment, valued at more than $176,000 (wholesale), includes broad-spectrum antibiotics, wound-care supplies (gauze, tape, bandages) orthopedic supplies, basic medical supplies (exam gloves, masks, syringes and needles), and personal care products (toothbrushes, soap).

MOSCTHA, a nonprofit organization, provides medical care and comprehensive health programs in shanty towns and border areas. Part of its mission is to provide the most vulnerable populations with comprehensive health services with the highest level of quality in a timely and efficient manner.

Direct Relief is collaborating with partners outside the quake damage zone to deliver medical aid to the injured as efficiently as possible. A humanitarian corridor from the Dominican Republic to Haiti has been established to facilitate aid delivery, which is critical in the face of extensive damage in Port-au-Prince.

Staff Reports from Port-au-Prince

January 19, 2010 - 8:30 am

Listen to a radio interview with Brett Williams from Haiti, broadcast this morning on KGO-AM, San Francisco

January 18, 2010 - 2 pm

Direct Relief staff members Brett Williams and Nate Brock are in Haiti coordinating logistics and relief efforts there. Williams' comments from Port-au-Prince follow:

We have been able to organize the piles of medical supplies for the tent hospital that has been established in two large tents at the UN compound, where dozens of volunteer physicians from the States and several from France are working nonstop. Staff from the University of Miami, and a team from New Jersey were among the many who had been at it for days – sleeping onsite on crates.

Sunday evening, patients with serious injuries, including open compound fractures, were still arriving to be seen for the first time.

As we work to organize the resources already here, we are receiving site level assessments and reports from our partner health facilities – all of them are draining supplies fast and need replenishment. The in-country logistics for distribution, essentially from the airport outward, are pinched. We are focusing on the medical-supply channels, but food, water, fuel, patient transport, and every other type of transport and distribution function also is urgent.

Former President Clinton is here today, and we were with him at the hospital in Port-au-Prince. We have connected with Partners in Health and will work together to assist St. Damien Children’s Hospital. The pre-positioned emergency medical supplies we provided to St. Damien months ago in anticipation of an emergency (which we thought would be a hurricane), was a good call. But they need more, as do other partners, just to keep up.

Direct Relief Emergency Response Staff in Haiti to Coordinate Logistics

January 17 – 1 pm PST

Brett Williams, director of emergency response, and Nate Brock, operations specialist, are in Port-au-Prince coordinating logistics and more for Direct Relief’s aid provision in country. The two are attending briefings with Former President Bill Clinton (right) as well as U.N. officials.

Williams has coordinated on-the-ground earthquake responses for Direct Relief during Pakistan’s 2005 quake and the 2008 quake in China. He traveled extensively through Haiti in March 2009, on partner assessment visits and to manage placement of three Hurricane Prep Modules across the country. (The emergency-aid modules were released for regular patient care November 30, the end of hurricane season.)

Brock, a Direct Relief staff member since 2005, has served in the U.S. Marine Corps since 2003. He served a six-month active-duty tour last year in Iraq.

Magellan’s in Santa Barbara outfitted Williams and Brock with donated travel supplies for their trip.

Boy Donates Birthday Money for Haiti Today

January 17, 2010 - 12 pm

Direct Relief received a donation today from a boy who came to our offices with his mother to drop off money he had received for his birthday. He is one of thousands of donors who have selflessly supported our emergency response work in Haiti, at whatever level they are able. We are touched and grateful for your support.

Consignment Arrives Five Days Before Quake

Aid to Justinian University Hospital will help support its care for trauma patients 

January 16, 2010 

Five days before the earthquake hit in Haiti, Justinian University Hospital (JUH) in Cap-Haitien received a 40-foot container size shipment of medical aid and supplies from Direct Relief to support its regular patient care.  Valued at more than $135,000 (wholesale), the supplies and equipment will be extremely useful as the hospital anticipates an influx of trauma patients in the coming days.

Outside the quake-damage zone on Haiti’s north coast, JUH is a 250-bed teaching facility that cares for a population of about 825,000. It provides a range of services, including pediatrics, general surgery, OB/GYN, and family medicine. The hospital is supported by Konbit Sante, a nonprofit organization with offices in the U.S. and Haiti. Konbit Sante has upgraded and renovated JUH over the past few years and helps manage its inventory, but relies on other sources such as Direct Relief for medical material donations.

As Haiti’s second-largest hospital, JUH is anticipating a large role in caring for quake survivors. “JUH will be receiving patients via helicopter soon; we don't yet know how many patients will be arriving over the coming week,” Konbit Sante Executive Director Nate Nickerson said in an email to Direct Relief. He added that the hospital is anticipating a high need for anesthetics, equipment, and supplies for its operating and emergency rooms.

As a trusted partner for three years, Direct Relief equipped JUH with a Hurricane Preparedness Module for the 2009 hurricane season. JUH reported in December that the module allowed it to complete an emergency-response plan for the main facility and surrounding clinics since it had the supplies needed to coordinate a response. Though hurricane season proved calm, that preparation will be useful now as JUH works to help earthquake survivors.

FedEx Shipment Leaving Direct Relief International Today for Haiti

January 15, 2010 – 1 pm PST

Direct Relief International is airlifting 13 pallets of medications and medical supplies to Haiti today via FedEx. The shipment includes antibiotics, wound care, sterilization products, bandages, and other necessary supplies to treat the injured. The shipment contains products valued at over $600,000. FedEx has generously donated its logistics and transportation services to assist in the earthquake response.

FedEx is picking up the shipment at Direct Relief this afternoon, which will be processed in Los Angeles and depart from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) tonight. The delivery is scheduled to arrive to Partners in Health (PIH) in Port-Au-Prince on Monday.

PIH has been providing medical care to the people of Haiti for 20 years through its eight facilities throughout the country.  Direct Relief has communicated with PIH daily since Tuesday’s earthquake, and will continue to work with them to deliver the medicine and supplies they need.

Partners Outside Port-au-Prince Treating Quake Injured

January 14, 2010

Direct Relief partners reported this morning that they are seeing increasing numbers of patients from the quake-affected areas of Port-au-Prince are seeking care at their facilities outside the damage zone.

With medical facilities in Port-au-Prince overwhelmed or destroyed, patients are migrating out to neighboring areas to seek care. Aid deploying tomorrow will help replenish their stocks so they can continue to care for the injured. Direct Relief also is expanding its support to partner sites across Haiti that are seeing increased patient loads due to the lack of available facilities in the capital.

Justinian University Hospital (JUH) in Cap-Haitien, on Haiti’s north coast, reported today that they expected to receive trauma cases airlifted from Port-au-Prince by MINUSTAH  helicopter. JUH is the second-largest hospital in Haiti and is one of the three partner facilities in Haiti that receives Direct Relief’s pre-positioned emergency modules as well as ongoing support.

Direct Relief also has provided funding for a supply-chain manager at UHJ, who delivered the report earlier today and outlined the specific additional needs brought on by the emergency.

Partners in Health (PIH) shared that people are traveling hours on their own to seek care and have headed to Cange, where PIH operates Zanmi Lasante Sociomedical Complex, a 104-bed full-service hospital. The facility has two operating rooms, adult and pediatric inpatient wards, a laboratory, a pharmaceutical warehouse, a blood bank, and radiographic services.

St. Damien Children’s Hospital reported that it has sustained only minor structural damage. The facility is near the airport in Port-au-Prince. The emergency medical aid shipment departing tomorrow is destined for St. Damien, with additional plans being developed for follow-up deliveries to other partners.

FedEx to Airlift $2 Million in Medical Aid to Haiti

January 13, 2010

With the staggering scale of human tragedy becoming more clear, Direct Relief extends our deepest sympathies to the people who have lost loved ones in Haiti.

To assist survivors, the organization’s emergency response team is arranging an emergency airlift containing over $2 million in medicines and medical supplies that will depart Friday.

The aid consignment will be transported by FedEx, a major contributor to Direct Relief’s emergency response work, which is again donating its legendary logistics expertise as well as airlift for the consignment.

Though communications interruptions in and out of Haiti persist, partners have reported that their facilities have sustained damage but are operational.

The emergency consignments include materials for trauma and wound care, broad-spectrum antibiotics, water-purification products, and oral-rehydration solutions.

The consignment departing Friday is for the emergency medical response efforts being conducted by Partners in Health, which has set up a temporary headquarters in the main hospital in Port-au-Prince, and has committed additional staff to the relief effort; and St. Damien Children’s Hospital, which sustained damage to its building (and, tragically, lost two volunteers to earthquake damage at their homes) but is continuing to treat trauma cases. Watch a Today Show video about St. Damien's response.

Direct Relief International Responding to 7.0-Magnitude Earthquake in Haiti
January 12, 2010

Direct Relief International is responding to a 7.0-magnitude earthquake and its aftershocks that struck Haiti today. The earthquake, centered off Port-au-Prince, destroyed a hospital in Petionville and damaged other buildings.  Early reports indicate significant property damage and deep concern about large numbers of injured persons.

Emergency aid is being offered to all our partners in Haiti to support their response to the quake. Two shipping containers of medical material aid were scheduled to arrive today in Port-au-Prince today as part of Direct Relief’s ongoing humanitarian and emergency-preparedness work in the country.

The 40-foot and 20-foot containers, containing over $420,000 of essential medicines, supplies, and nutritionals, were destined for St. Damien Children’s Hospital. The hospital is one of three local facilities in Haiti with which Direct Relief has partnered in its Emergency Pre-Positioning Program. The program stages essential medical materials on site with key partners for immediate use in emergency situations such as this one.

The organization announced it will commit up to $1 million in aid for the response and is coordinating with its other in-country partners and colleague organizations.

Direct Relief’s partners in Haiti include Partners in Health, St. Damien Children’s Hospital, Christian Aid Ministries, the Visitation Hospital, and Food for the Poor. St. Damien and Partners in Health are particularly active in emergency response and last year received pre-positioned materials in anticipation of hurricane season.  The pre-positioned materials become available for general use by the facilities November 30, the end of hurricane season.

Since 2000, Direct Relief has provided more than $60 million in medical material aid to Haiti.

Direct Relief's partners in-country provide medical care for thousands of vulnerable Haitians. Partners in Health began in 1985 as a small community clinic; today that clinic has grown to a 104-bed, full-service hospital and eight other clinic sites across Haiti's Central Plateau. Food for the Poor, a Catholic relief agency founded in 1982, offers assistance to the poor throughout Latin America and the Caribbean. Visitation Hospital serves between 80 and 90 patients a day at its facility outside Port-au-Prince, which houses a lab and pharmacy, seven exam rooms, two medical/dental procedure rooms, and a food bank.

As partners' needs become clear, additional emergency aid consignments will be dispatched.