Over the past seven days, Direct Relief has delivered 278 shipments of requested medical aid to 27 U.S. states and territories and 12 countries worldwide.
The shipments contained 12.1 million defined daily doses of medication, including first aid kits, insulin, vitamins, PPE, antibiotics, and more.
Shipments Arrive in Florida, Georgia, in response to Hurricane Idalia
Clean-up and recovery efforts are underway after Hurricane Idalia, which is now dissipating over the Atlantic Ocean.
At least one fatality in the United States has been attributed to the storm, which took a relatively quick path through parts of Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina.
Initial damage assessments are underway across all three states, even as about 200,000 homes and businesses were without power Thursday, down from over 300,000 locations earlier in the day, according to power outage tracking site Poweroutage.us.
Direct Relief is working with dozens of healthcare clinics and centers focused on helping communities affected by the storm.
Urgent medical needs include a combination of prescription medicines, over-the-counter medications, and emergency supplies, including antibiotics, inhalers, PPE, Direct Relief’s emergency medical backpacks, blood pressure medications, tetanus vaccines and insulin.
Direct Relief will continue to respond to requests for medicines and medical supplies into next week.
Maui Fire Response Continues
Direct Relief continues to field and respond to requests for medicines and medical supplies from clinics and emergency responders in Maui.
Urgently needed medical products include albuterol inhalers, tetanus vaccines, and a vaccine refrigerator, which Direct Relief is donating on an ongoing basis.
The road to Pohaku Park, Maui. 
Infusions of medical support are backfilling needs at local health clinics. (Brea Burkholz/Direct Relief) 
Direct Relief Responds to the Maui Wildfires of August 8, 2023. 
Direct Relief Responds to the Maui Wildfires of August 8, 2023. 
Direct Relief staff pack up trucks to deliver medicines to health providers on Aug. 12, 2023. (Brea Burkholz/Direct Relief) 
Medicines, including respiratory therapies such as inhalers, were part of the shipment. (Brea Burkholz/Direct Relief) 
Groups like Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition of Hawai’i have received emergency medical backpacks from Direct Relief for triage care. (Brea Burkholz/Direct Relief) 
Damage seen on Maui after catastrophic, wind-driven fires swept through the area. (Brea Burkholz/Direct Relief) 
Damage seen on Maui after catastrophic, wind-driven fires swept through the area. (Brea Burkholz/Direct Relief) 
Banyan Court, home to a 150-year-old historic landmark Banyan tree, is seen on Aug. 11, 2023. More than 80 percent of the surrounding town has been destroyed. (Photo courtesy of County of Maui) 
A shipment of N-95 masks, hygiene kits, and other medical products are packed and staged for shipment to Maui on Friday morning. (Brea Burkholz/Direct Relief)
Direct Relief is also supporting re-entry needs for residents of Lahaina by working with local volunteers and the Maui County Emergency Management Agency to provide protective gear for residents going back to retrieve belongings and assess damage to their property.
To help make re-entry as safe as possible, Direct Relief is providing 20,000 N95 masks, 5,000 P100 respirators, coveralls, safety goggles, work gloves, boot covers, and drawstring bags for the effort in addition to these supplies.
Medical bus in India gets upgraded after 20 years of service
After the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, Direct Relief helped secure a medical outreach vehicle for Amrita Hospital, a large university teaching hospital in Kochi, India, allowing it to reach remote communities lacking healthcare.
Since then, the bus has facilitated over 900,000 patient screenings and appointments across India.
But after 20 years, the bus was on its last legs, so Amrita Hospital approached Direct Relief for help with funding a replacement vehicle. So, Direct Relief granted Amrita Hospital $250K to build, equip and operate a new vehicle, complete with diagnostic and x-ray capabilities.
The bus is preparing for its first medical outreach missions to support rural communities lacking easy access to healthcare. The bus will also enable Amrita Hospital to respond to disasters across the country.
OPERATIONAL SNAPSHOT
WORLDWIDE
This week, Direct Relief shipped 10.7 million defined daily doses of medication outside the U.S.
Countries that received medical aid over the past week included:
- Yemen
- Ukraine
- Ethiopia
- Tanzania
- Republic of the Congo
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Sudan
- Ghana
- India
- Iraq
- Tunisia
- Malawi
UNITED STATES
Direct Relief delivered 265 shipments containing more than 8.5 tons of medications over the past week to organizations, including the following:
- HEALing Community Center, Georgia
- Light of the World Clinic, Florida
- J.C. Lewis Health Care Center, Georgia
- Icna Relief USA Programs Inc dba Shifa Free Clinic, South Carolina
- Rapha Clinic of West Georgia, Georgia
- Samaritan Health and Wellness Center, Florida
- Open Arms Clinic, Georgia
- Grace Medical Home, Florida
- Family Health Services Burley Pharmacy, Idaho
- Tree Of Life Healthcare, Georgia
YEAR-TO-DATE (GLOBAL)
Since January 1, 2023, Direct Relief has delivered 14,000 shipments to 2,157 healthcare providers in 55 U.S. states and territories and 82 countries.
These shipments contained 34.8 million defined daily doses of medication valued at $1.4 billion (wholesale), totaling 4.6 million lbs.
in the news
- Direct Relief Helping in Florida after Idalia — NewsNation
- Hurricane Idalia relief efforts underway — Fox Weather
- How to help Hurricane Idalia victims, or get assistance if you need it — Yahoo! News
- How to help in the aftermath of powerful Hurricane Idalia — CNN
- Eli Lilly Partners With Direct Relief to Aid Maui Residents –Fair360
- HUD Secretary announces disaster relief funds, and stresses need for more housing at Direct Relief — KCBX
- Direct Relief and The Pfizer Foundation Support 19 Programs To Improve Infectious Disease Care in the United States — Bloomberg
- Startup Curae Pharma360 partners with Direct Relief to distribute free contraceptives to safety-net clinics — Fierce Healthcare