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Over the past seven days, Direct Relief has delivered 602 shipments of requested medical aid to 48 U.S. states and territories and 12 countries worldwide.
The shipments contained 10 million defined daily doses of medication and supplies, including wound care products, cardiovascular drugs, diabetes management supplies, vitamins, and more.
Solar Installation Complete at Nepali Hospital
Siddhasthali Rural Community Hospital is now equipped with solar backup power. (Photo Courtesy of Mountain Heart Nepal)
In 2015, a devastating earthquake struck Nepal, killing over 8,000 people and leaving thousands more injured and in dire need of help. Post-earthquake, the country’s medical infrastructure was not left unscathed. A report issued by Nepal’s Ministry of Health and Population noted that 375 of the 446 public health facilities and 16 private facilities in Nepal’s hardest-hit regions were destroyed.
To help respond to urgent health needs, Direct Relief quickly coordinated with corporate partners as well as established local and emergency response partners to send pallets full of requested medicines and medical supplies to healthcare facilities. In the decade since the earthquake, Direct Relief has supported the health system, including by providing funds to Nepali NGO Mountain Heart Nepal for the construction of Siddhasthali Rural Community Hospital, a 15-bed facility in southern Nepal. The project has been steadily making progress over the last three years, and now the hospital is set to open on April 1, 2024.
Direct Relief has also equipped the new facility with a medical oxygen plant and cold-storage capacity, as well as a recently-installed backup solar system. The solar energy system is producing electricity with surplus energy going back to the electrical grid. This surplus energy is credited back to the hospital by the Nepal Electrical Authority, thus generating extra income for the hospital.
California Storm Preparations Underway
Large amounts of precipitation barrel towards California as seen via satellite on Feb. 16, 2024. The region has been inundated with several atmospheric rivers this winter. (Satellite image via NOAA)
California is bracing for another set of storm systems to move through the state over the next week, which could bring flooding and landslides in its wake. Two atmospheric rivers will bring more than five inches of rain to various parts of the state, with the heaviest impacts expected in Northern California and along the Central Coast.
In advance of the storms, Direct Relief has been in communication about potential needs with state and regional primary care associations, search and rescue organizations across the state, the Medical Reserve Corps, and other first responder groups. The organization maintains a medical inventory of medications and supplies commonly requested during emergencies, including flooding.
The latest storm system is one in a series of atmospheric rivers to inundate the state, and Direct Relief has been responding to ongoing requested for groups experiencing impacts from flooding. In February, Direct Relief dispatched multiple immediate shipments of requested aid to partner organizations across the state. An emergency health kit, a large cache of essential medicines and supplies often requested after disasters, was shipped to Los Angeles to support a damaged health facility that had lost supplies due to flooding.
Also dispatched were field medic packs, filled with items for triage care outside of clinic walls, and personal care kits, packed with hygiene items like soap, toothbrushes, and toothpaste, that departed Direct Relief’s warehouse for distribution to organizations and health facilities across the state. California Emergency Medical Services Agency (Cal EMSA) also received 40 requested field medic packs for teams deployed throughout the state in response to the storms.
The organization will continue to respond to the latest storm system as needs become known.
Operational Snapshot
WORLDWIDE
Over the last week, Direct Relief shipped more than 6.5 million defined daily doses of medication outside the U.S.
Countries that received medical aid over the past week included:
Peru
Zambia
Ukraine
Senegal
Ghana
Turkey
Antigua and Barbuda
Jamaica
Nepal
UNITED STATES
A shipment of hygiene items were packed at Direct Relief’s headquarters this week and are now ready to ship to Virginia. (Brianna Newport/Direct Relief)
Direct Relief delivered 588 shipments containing over 14 tons of medications during the past seven days to organizations, including the following:
Welvista, South Carolina
NC MedAssist, North Carolina
St. Vincent de Paul Pharmacy, Texas
PanCare of Florida, Inc. Malone, Florida
CommunityHealth, Illinois
Palmetto Health Council, Inc., Georgia
Mercy Medical Clinic, Kentucky
St. Vincent de Paul Charitable Pharmacy Cincinnati, Ohio
UNC Health Care, North Carolina
Volunteers in Medicine Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
YEAR TO DATE
Since January 1, 2024, Direct Relief has delivered 3,140 shipments to 1,089 partner organizations in 52 U.S. states and territories and 47 countries.
These shipments contained 52.4 million defined daily doses of medication totaling 547,723 lbs.
