The State of the World's Midwifery: Haiti

Please follow this link to get some more information on Haiti and midwifery in Haiti.

an update from Haiti

I just had to share this link!

http://www.mamababyhaiti.org/the-last-few-weeks-have-been-busy-busy-busy-around-here-at-the-clinic/comment-page-1/#comment-1520

The most recent blog post from Dr. Zeenia. She is the Naturopathic doctor living at MamaBaby Haiti (and an Oregonian). She posted a few pictures and the second picture (of Julyssa) is the baby that I saw three times in our clinic that was suffering with severe malnutrition.

Look how beautiful she is! I never did photograph her while I was there, but I am happy to report that she has improved greatly! This makes me so happy!

Thanks Zeenia for the update!

Faith

I was asked to speak about my experiences in Haiti at my church last week. It was an interesting experience to plan my talk around the theme of faith. If the topic had been service it would have been so much easier and I would have been able to tell many stories!

But as usual the easy way isn't always the best. The challenge was an opportunity for me to see my own experiences in a different way.

The apostle Paul tells us: “… faith is the substance of things hoped for, and the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1) As I was studying for my talk I learned that faith is a principal of action. And no greater example of that was my preparation to travel to Haiti.

I had no idea what I was going to see, feel or experience. I had to overcome a lot of fear to get there. It was easy at home, months before my departure, to make the commitment to go. But as my time came near I felt afraid and wondered what I was doing and why. In the presence of fear my faith was not able to grow, so I was learning to let go of that fear and move forward.

As I was traveling I had many moments that pushed me far outside of my comfort zone. Now in looking back I have reflected on this and realized that I was never really afraid, just uncomfortable. I was able to feel the power of my family and friends' prayers and trust that my own internal wisdom would be guided by the spirit and know of my safety and surety of what I was doing.

A proud mama moment when I read my youngest daughters blog and found this post:

With my mom being a midwife, this health unit of “birth” is hard to listen to. Biatches tryin to tell me you can’t have a breech baby vaginally? Or naturally?

Shut yo mouths.

I think it's time for me to consider contacting the school district to teach a unit on birth.

International Midwives Day

Today the midwifery community celebrated International Midwives Day by holding a rally on the steps of the State Capitol. It was very well organized by a committee of midwives.

The speakers were great. We heard from homebirth moms, dads and a sibling (my favorite being an articulate 13 year old girl who was born premature in the hospital, and witnessed her sister and brother born at home. She has got a future in public speaking!) We also heard from a couple of representatives who had homebirths, as well as some midwives and student midwives.

The keynote speaker was Jennifer Block who wrote the book "Pushed". This is my favorite book about the history of birth. She has never had a child herself but told the story of the first birth she attended and how it fueled her passion to research and write about birth practices. She told some sobering statistics. Currently the United States is ranked 50 out of 59 industrialized countries in maternal death. She also talked about the increasing rates of cesareans and how when hospitals are built or remodeled they are built to sustain a 50% cesarean rate. She stated that in relation to birth we are in a health care crisis! I've been trying to scream this fact for quite awhile now! I agree with Jennifer when she says the United States is OVERSPENDING and UNDERSERVING.

Attending the rally in Salem today was a positive experience for me and very inspiring.



We still need to get more consumers out there to support this cause. It was great to have so many people today but the vast majority were midwives. Real change can only happen when YOU the consumer stand up in masses and fight for your right to have a natural birth, breech birth, VBAC, twin birth, unmedicated birth, insurance paid birth, a gentle, non-invasive, midwife attended birth.

I have been carrying my last set of pictures around in my camera since I arrived home. I finally went to buy an SD card reader so I could load them on my computer. I should have done this before I went to Haiti but I didn't know such a thing existed until I was in Haiti. So now I have this handy little zip drive looking thing that I can put my SD card into and load them onto my computer, and I don't have to be upset that the card reader on my computer isn't working.

It is difficult to see, but this tree is FULL of mango's.

It is just amazing to see such an abundance of fruit.

And here is a banana tree with many bananas ready to be picked and eaten!

This sign just cracked me up the first time I saw it. I asked our driver to stop the next time we drove by so I could get a picture of it. He told me the picture on the right is the owner of the house and he loves Obama so he decided to make a mural of Obama and himself on his gate.

View from my bus leaving the bus station in Cap Haitien.
This is the outdoor waiting area at the station.

This is broken glass bottles that have been cemented in the wall to protect the property. I saw this while on the bus entering Haiti. I had never seen anything like this and thought "what a genius idea!". I spent the rest of my trip trying to get a good picture and as you can see I failed! I only spotted these while driving and I knew on my bus ride out of the country this was my lost shot, and this is what I got!

An article about the re-feeding program at the children's hospital in Cap Haitien. This is the program that our sweet baby we've been seeing at MamaBaby Haiti is participating in.



http://www.miaminewtimes.com/2010-07-01/news/peanut-butter-miracles-amid-haiti-s-chaos-an-american-pediatrician-has-made-ending-child-malnutrition-her-life-s-work/

Hygiene Kits

Michelet giving instructions on how to use the hygiene kit in a village clinic.

This is the hygiene kit that Taryn made!

The kids at my church made hygiene kits for me to take to Haiti. They did a great job! Some of them asked me to take pictures if I could. I did have the opportunity to pass one out myself and made sure to get a picture. When I handed it to the young man I saw that it had Taryn's name on it. It made me smile.

I know some of the hygiene kits were given out, and there are still some at the clinic to be given at a later time.

Many of the children have skin rashes because they bathe with laundry detergent. It is much cheaper and easier to get than facial soap. Many of the kits were given to people who needed better soap to bathe with.

Thank you kids for helping to serve the children in Haiti. I love you for helping!

Finally, a few of my favorites.

Home sweet home for the last two weeks, under my mosquito net. I'm still covered in mosquito bites, though!


I had been wondering what this message on the peanut butter meant. Then after being at MamaBaby for a few days we heard the story. A volunteer that had been there earlier had gotten under the skin of some of the staff. One of the things he would do is eat HUGE amounts of peanut butter from the jar, without even asking if it was ok. (It was a community jar on the table...but still).



This isn't that great of a picture, but it does have a story to go with it. We were walking down the street, it is my first full day in Haiti and I am overwhelmed with the sights and sounds. There are people everywhere, traffic zooming by just inches from where we are walking, garbage and animals everywhere! Someone tells me to to turn around to take a picture of this truck full of people and just as I turn around the driver lays on his horn. I just about jumped out of my skin. Every car and motorcycle honks in Haiti, but this guy was trying to mess with me.



The school children dress in uniforms and many of them look incredibly crisp, clean and adorable!



If I could have taken this girl home with me I would! She lives at the orphanage and had such a sweet smile. She was wearing a white dress that was torn and dirty and I wanted to scoop her up and protect her. This is also one of my favorite pictures because of the contrast of the dirty white door, curtains and dress, and the lovely brown of her skin and love in her eyes. I heard that she had just arrived at the orphanage because her mom had died. I could never confirm that this was true, but I wondered. Her eyes did not seem to have that haunted look of a child that had been neglected for some time.



This little boy lives at the orphanage. I took this in the late afternoon and didn't think there was enough light, but I love it. He was coloring and looked up at me. The people don't usually smile when you take their picture. But if you show the children the picture you took they will usually smile or laugh.


These children I met at one of our village clinics. This was the one we did this week in Balan. These children were the exception, smiling and laughing FOR the picture. I held the camera high and their eyes followed. I love their bright eyes and smiling faces. I took many pictures of them, showing them the picture each time I did. It was fun.


I think this may be one of my favorite shots. This was also taken at the Balan village. I spotted these girls walking, I think they had their arms linked, and they were reading out load to each other. It would have made the best shot. By the time I got my camera out they had turned behind this fence, but I love it!

In the Middle: Between Haiti and Home

I cried when the car left MamaBaby Haiti this morning and I cried until I got to the bus station. I kept it under control and good thing I had my sunglasses on. I don't know what I was crying about. Saying goodbye to friends, old and new. Knowing their work was going on without me. The sights and sounds. Especially the people. The people of Haiti, for good or bad, mean something in this world.

I was so immersed in the work that I didn't take time to think about what I was feeling. I figured as I left Haiti it would take time to process. I would step back and think about the experience over time. Giving myself to Haiti wasn't just about waking up each morning and working. But what was it about?

On my last day of clinic one of our last patients turned to the interpreter and asked him to thank us for our patience and for helping her. And our last patient remembered me from the week before and smiled a warm smile at me, telling the interpreter that she remembered me. I didn't come to Haiti to be thanked, but having these woman respond to me in that way just warmed my heart.

I can say at this time, in the middle of Haiti and Home, is that I am thinking about the people. Each patient I saw, each baby I held and the impact their life had on mine. Each one suffering in some way, each one a dignified and deserving human being.

I hope I shared my love and compassion with them in spite of cultural and language barriers. Barriers that were and continue to be difficult to overcome. I can not understand all things about Haiti and it's people, but I am filled knowing that I tried.

Had a fun night last night. The young men put on their music and they were dancing and drinking. Some of us girls sat outside in the cooler air and had some good conversations. I celebrated with a Tampico. This is a sugary fruit punch drink that has some juice in it. Many, many Haitians drink it (along with other sugary drinks) and I spent every day in Haiti telling patients NOT to drink it. So it seemed fitting that I would at least give it a try. It is sweet and very good!

I had some very connecting moments with Susan and Nancy. We will forever be tied by our experiences in Haiti and I feel appreciative to have had this experience with them and built a friendship with them in this way. They are both strong, forward women and I sometimes feel that I have nothing to bring to the table when I am with them, but I know this is not true. We each have our gifts.

Haiti's goodbye gift to me has been a cooler night, a sunny morning and power on for over 24 hours straight. But Haiti has given me so much more! I haven't been able to begin to process. I have been here working and living and having fun, but struggling with what each day and each moment feels like. I am sure it will come with time.

I will miss so much about this place! I am surprised by how quickly I feel at home and how adapted I have become to the sights and sounds and smells.

Orevwa for now!!

Last day in Haiti

The baby that is severely malnourished did make it into the clinic this morning. Her sister brought her in and Marie and one of the students accompanied them to the hospital. The hospital put her on a re-feeding program. They will be doing blood work on Monday, and the clinic staff will be following up closely and providing transportation to the hospital. This little girl is so precious and her life is in jeopardy. She is unwanted by her father and I'm sure she is a burden to her sister, who is trying to go to school and is a young woman. I think the sister cares but is overwhelmed. As I was holding this precious child yesterday and trying to feed her it was difficult to not want to protect her and provide for her and take her away from here. But this is not the answer in Haiti. There are so many who suffer and those of us who come here to give can only do so much.

I feel emotional today and wonder about the bigger picture of Haiti. I have seen things I could not have imagined before. I wonder about the impact of my visit to Haiti and all the other volunteers who care so much about the work they are doing here. The problem is large and I am small. I don't know the answer.

There is a Haitian proverb that says "Deye mon gen mon", Behind mountains there are more mountains. The meaning of this is Haiti is much more complex than meets the eyes.

But another Haitian proverb says " Men anpil, chay pa lou", With many hands, the load is not heavy."

People will continue to come to Haiti to try to help. These many hands will make a difference. But the real changes need to come from within. That is a much bigger and longer story to be told.

Our Day Off

We had a good day, but it was exhausting! Susan, Nancy and I (along with our interpreter, Guy) went to The Citadel which is a tourist place (though I did not see another white person where we were) so everywhere you go people want to do things for you or sell things to you. It was insane. When we first arrived two guys were walking with us and we realized one was trying to be our guide (which means we would have to pay him). We finally had to be rude and say we were not paying for a guide. He said ok and stayed with us for awhile. Of course we all gave him a few bucks because we felt bad. When the first guy left the second guy tried to smooth his way in. We said absolutely not, we were not paying for a guide. Then you have to go through this locked fence and we wondered if we should have given that guy a tip, especially when we came back down the hill and had to wait a very long time for someone to come back to unlock the gate.

We were told it was a 7 mile walk to the top of the Citadel, we didn't want to ride a horse up (or pay for it) and we didn't want to pay for a motorcycle, so we just walked for about a mile. It was killer. We were followed by the horses and motorcycles for almost a half mile. I'm sure they thought we were some crazy blanco chicks. We kept trying to tell them no, go away (in creole) and that we didn't plan to walk the whole way to the top. They just kept following us, I’m sure they thought we were going to give in and ask them for a ride. But guess who won? I felt so claustrophobic surrounded by all those men and stinky horses walking up that hill in the heat, I was so happy they finally went away.

On the way down some random guy was walking with us and talking to us and then out of nowhere he's carrying these paintings and trying to sell them. He was driving me crazy! I made him my final offer and he wouldn't back off. Then he tried to threaten me that he was going to go back home...haha. I must look like a sucker, because no one would leave me alone.

After coming down the hill we walked a little through the town. It was a quaint little town, the buildings were nice and colorful and the streets were cleaner with sidewalks. We were looking for a place to eat or buy souvenirs, but when I saw a pan of chicken feet I wanted to go into Cap Haitien and find something a little more reliable. Our driver and interpreter didn't know of anyplace in the town so that was not reassuring either. We ended up going to the same restaurant we ate at last week.

After lunch we went to a supermarket downtown. Nearly no fresh fruit or vegetables. Very limited supply of food in general. We wanted to buy some fruit so we were going to go to the outdoor market across the corner but decided not to. It was very intimidating to be in the middle of town surrounded by all those people. And the smell is retched! On our drive home we stopped on the side of the road but all we could find were grapefruit and lime. Nancy bought three coconuts for a dollar.

We dropped off our interpreter to run some errands so I sat in the front seat on the way home. I got a chance to videotape the drive because you really can not believe the way people drive here. The other day we were driving somewhere and we almost had a head on with a huge tanker! Susan said it seemed like I was getting used to the driving. I think I'm getting used to a lot of things around here. I am still in awe of so much, but am aware that my reactions are much less than the first few days I was here.

When we arrived home the students were still doing pediatric clinics. I found out that the little baby I saw last week with severe nutrition deficiency was in the clinic, so I sat in on the rest of her appointment. We saw her last Monday and asked her sister to take her to the hospital and come back on Thursday and we did not see her back until today. I'm glad to see her bring her back, but things are not improving. She is 7 months old and now weighs 10 pounds, having lost 6 more ounces in the last week and a half. The plan for now is to have her return early tomorrow morning and Marie will accompany them to the hospital. We need to have blood work done to find out exactly what is going on.

Tomorrow is my last full day in Haiti. Hard to believe my time is coming to an end. It has been amazing.

What a day!

After getting only a few hours of sleep this morning, we woke up and headed with the students to do a village clinic. We heard that there would be pregnant women there so they wanted the midwives to go. We were going to a village that MamaBaby Haiti had never been to before, to a church in a village that was a distance away. We were treated with a tap tap ride. So happy to not have to walk, already feeling so tired.

The tap tap ride was fun and I tried to get video but I don't know how successful I was. The village was remote and the roads were rough so we couldn't get all the way by tap tap and had to walk the last little bit. This ended up to be such a treat as we were rewarded with amazing views of the ocean, an island in the distance, a bay and the lush jungle. Many people were walking with bunches of bananas on their heads. A couple of people wanted us to take pictures of them.

As we arrived in the village there were many people watching us and waving, following us as we entered. We arrived at the church were many children were around in their school uniforms. The pastor has a school behind the church. I got so many good pictures of beautiful children.

We saw several pregnant mamas in our clinic. Marie arrived later because she had stayed behind with our postpartum mama. When she arrived we gave her our last few patients. Susan and I were losing steam and running low on water. We sent a Haitian woman (the friend of the mama who gave birth last night) with money to get us a drink. I really wanted water or Tampico, but she came back with Coke and Sprite. My second Coke in one week! And it was cold! At that point I didn't care and it was just what we needed. Later we went on a little walk through the village looking for some vegetables but all we found were cookies and candy. So we bought some! We were kind of laughing at ourselves; the dietician and two midwives who have been preaching every day to drink more water, no coffee, cookies, Tampico or soda, and here we were drinking and eating crap in front of them. We worked until 3:30pm without lunch so we now know that drinking sugary drinks and eating sugary food does suppress your appetite.

Since Susan, Nancy and I spent a lot of time sitting around in the afternoon the children were hovering and staring, giving us many photo ops. I think I got some good ones and can't wait to upload them.

Before we left the church the pastor gave us a beautiful thank you. So sincere and said he hoped we would be blessed for our work and that we would be able to come back again. It is a village of 5,000 people and no clinic or doctor, so when people get sick it can be serious. He said a prayer for us before we said our final meci's.

We had to hike a little out of the village, but the tap tap was waiting for us not too far away. The real adventure was when we piled 19 people in the back of the tap tap and two in the front and headed home on the roughest roads I may have ever seen. I had Michelet's bony butt on my knees for a while and I could not feel my legs or feet. Our Haitian friend who bought our Cokes hitched a ride with us and when she jumped off Michelet took her place and I could feel my legs again. Having 19 people in a tap tap is a true Haitian experience.

Susan and I were at the back of the tap tap so we jumped off first and headed to the house quickly, hoping the power was on and we could get a shower. I was a little thrown off when I saw the charcoal going outside, but YES the power was on. We got the first showers and feel much better after also having a bowl of shrimp soup.

A bunch of us went together and bough some fresh lobster in the village, so that's what's for dinner.

Truly a rewarding and exciting day. Glad we decided to go, in spite of feeling tired.

Baby Boy

At 1:53am on April 6th a baby boy was born at MamaBaby Haiti.

It was a very long day.

Santo woke me and Marie up at 7am Tuesday, I woke Susan up and we went downstairs to welcome mama. Today was prenatal day so Susan spent the day doing that while I labor sat. Mom was definitely in labor, but things were progressing slowly. After dinner Susan joined us and we started brainstorming ways to get things moving, thinking that possibly the baby was in a less than ideal position.

We tried homeopathics, lunges, position changes, herbs and acupuncture. I'm not sure what really worked in the end, but while I went to take a nap around midnight things shifted. I was woken up around 1:15 am and mom was pushing. Her beautiful baby boy emerged vigorous and healthy.

It was difficult for Susan and I at times because things are managed differently that we would do it at home. We realized that trying to change things would be unrealistic and we just tried to step aside and let Marie do things the way she is trained, while still supporting her.

After the birth the mama's mom and sister came in to greet the baby with big smiles. The sister is pregnant with her 4th baby, but her 2 year old died just a few months ago. She was seen in prenatals today and was dealing with grief around that. She was also given some rice because she has no food and hadn't been eating. When she walked in the room she was so full of joy and love. She took the baby and swung him around and laughed. It was so sweet. I notice the people of Haiti don't smile often and don't show much emotion, so this was a surprise. She was happy to have this little boy in her life.

Now I realize I must get some sleep. The troups in this house will be waking up in just a few hours and tomorrow we have a village clinic and prenatals!

Election Results are In

The election results came in today and Michel Martelly won. There was a little anxiety about what would happen when the results came in, but it appears that the community around here is happy. There is honking and shouting (more than usual!) and it sounds like a party out there.

Feeling Sick

Mid morning I started feeling queasy and lightheaded. Thought maybe I was just tired from last night, but now I think it's a little more. I didn't eat lunch! It must be serious!

Zeenia gave me some probiotics and I've slept the day away. SO thankful the power is on so I didn't have to sleep in a pool of sweat. My goodness, we've been lucky with power the last two days. I am now out on the couch, so bored of laying in my bed. Ate a handful of nuts, but wishing for some fruit or something cool.

Hope I'll feel better soon, this sucks!

I did see two patients this morning before I started feeling bad. One was the tiny girl I saw last week whose mother has mental health problems. She disappeared a few days ago. Her grandma brought her in and she was looking better. I weighed her and she had gained a whole pound! We told grandma she was doing a great job. We gave her more formula and told her to return in one week.

Nancy is teaching a nutrition class tomorrow. Susan and Eve have been helping her all afternoon with the planning of that.

The wind is blowing like crazy! It whips through the vents of the house and makes a whistling sound that sounds like music.

Good Morning and Happy Birthday to my mama!

We monitored our "laboring" mama all night and still no dilation. We think that her pain is caused from her constipation and probably dehydration. We hydrated her, gave her Emergen-C, more herbal laxative and magnesium and sent her home. We also checked her iron level, which was extremely low, so we sent her home with iron and asked her to come back in a week. She is only 36 weeks so there was no reason to encourage labor.

I got a little sleep and the heat level was at a much improved comfort level. This morning is also more comfortable, I took a shower a few minutes ago and I'm not even sweating yet! Nice!

Pediatric clinic and as we sit here here eating our fruit and oatmeal we can hear the little ones lined up outside.

I love you all!

Mama in Labor?

Just as I was setting up a bed for myself on the deck (I did not want a repeat of last night's miserable, hot suffering) I saw some lights down the street (unusual, since the power was out). I watched for a minute then realized it was a car coming and it stopped in front of the house. There was a knock on the gate. Then another knock. We waited for the guard to open the gate, but when he didn't Sara and Zeenia went to check things out.

Sure enough it was a mama in labor!

We set things up and she seemed to be having regular contractions. We monitored for an hour. She was having a lot of back pain and pubic pain and couldn't pee. (She had brought her own pee bowl and was squatting over it on the floor trying to pee many times). She finally peed and then Marie decided to check her. She found that she wasn't dilated and that she was constipated. I also checked her and agreed.

We gave her an herbal laxative and tucked her in bed to see what happens. Then the power came on, giving me a chance to take a shower, update the blog and head to bed to see if something progresses tonight.

It got very windy tonight and rained a little. Outside is much cooler, and even inside the house is a bit cooler. It feels really nice.

Goodnight from Haiti!

Now I understand why the Haitian people spend the day outside of their homes. When there is no power it is hotter than hot inside! I spent the afternoon laying outside in the shade of the deck where there was a lovely breeze. I read and napped and it was wonderful. Still hot, but better than inside.

This morning we went to church with Santo and Marie. Now that was a Haitian experience! The pastor sometimes translates for us, so he is familiar with those of us at MamaBaby Haiti who come to visit. He invited us to come up and speak and Susan did. She thanked everyone for welcoming us and told them about the clinic.

The music was wonderful and loud. They dedicated a couple of songs to us, and I got them on video. A beautiful baby girl was dedicated. I have the sweetest picture of her in her fancy white dress. The pastor did some of his sermon in English and we wondered if the people didn't like that this made the sermon much longer in length. The people wear their finest clothes to church, which is amazing when you see how they live and how dirty it is everywhere. One little boy was wearing an all white suit and was adorable. I didn't get a picture of him. I did get a picture of three children sitting near me who stared at me the whole service. Every once in a while I would smile and wave at them. We must look pretty funny to these kids!

Pictures

I've been able to put a few pictures up on Facebook. It is taking about 15 minutes to get up a few pictures, so at this point there aren't many. We usually don't have power very long, and the internet is crazy slow. So if you are my facebook friend come take a look at the pictures. I have lots more I'll be putting up next week when I get home.

A conversation between Savannah and Regan (so cute):


Reg: Fannah you go home now?
Me: Not yet, when do I go home?
Reg: Night-time. After mommy done working.
Me: Yeah, night-time.
Reg: Go home and see you mommy. Fannah you see you mommy?
Me: No, where is my mommy?
Reg: Uhm......Haiti!
Me: Yeah, do you remember what she's doing there?
Reg: Kelli helping babies.
Me: Yeah, she's helping babies and mommies feel better.
Reg: Yeah help babies. Like a doctor!

Saturday!

The Bastyr students left this morning so the house is quiet. We welcomed Nancy and Eve and have been unpacking their bags and showing them around. The midwives spent the morning organizing the prenatal room. Susan has gone wild, decorating, putting up shelves and replacing the horrible plastic bag curtains we had. She used baby blankets and zip ties and they look much better! She had the drill out and is keeping us on task! Leesha and I organized the bins and drawers. We have no shelves to speak of, the price of wood and nails is outrageous in Haiti.

We took a break for lunch and now I'm finding it hard to get the energy to return to the prenatal room and finish the job.

We have had two short episodes of power today, which is unusual. Hopefully I'll get this posted before we loose it again.

Today is hot and humid. Not much new to report today. But that's a good thing, too!

April 1^st

Today was a pretty easy day! We had a morning of prenatals followed by a pretty good lunch. Rice of course, but today there was chicken and a wonderful salad made from the garden. It was so nice to eat fresh greens, I loved it! We thought we had a mama in labor this morning, but it was just braxton hicks contractions. We were scurrying about getting ready for prenatals and I was so excited that Suzanne would get in on a birth before she left tomorrow, but it didn't happen!

In the afternoon we went swimming. I wish I was able to post pictures and show you how lovely this place was. The other day when Susan and I had to go back to the airport to get her luggage our driver took us to this pool. He wanted to show us to drum up some business, I’m sure. It worked. For $5 each we were able to have the entire pool to ourselves. The others were happy to have a poolside bar as well. It was so refreshing and the first time since I’ve been in Haiti that I not only wasn’t sweating, but I actually felt cooled off. It was wonderful. I was dreading the one mile walk back home and Susan I were considering catching a motorcycle back. Then we heard that our driver from the other day gave us a pretty good deal-not only was he going to drive us home from the pool, he was going to wait for us to change our clothes and drive us into town for dinner, wait for us and drive us back home.

We went to a nice restaurant near the sea. It had a Caribbean feel to it and for a moment I forgot we were in Haiti. It was outdoor seating with music and dancing. There was a lovely breeze and it didn't feel hot at all. It must be a wealthier part of town because there were very well dressed people there. The food was pretty decent, but the best part was the ice in my coke (I had a real Coca Cola, in a bottle) and the ice cream for dessert. I could have sat out there much longer and was disappointed when we had to leave to go home. It was already later than we should have been out, it's just not safe to be out at night.

We came home to a dark house and sweltering house. I sprayed myself with deet and hung outside for awhile. I just couldn't take the heat! Power is on and I've been able to check my email. A good day! Looking forward to Nancy arriving tomorrow and seeing what the weekend brings to MamaBaby Haiti!

Easy day today. A morning of prenatals followed by a wonderful lunch that included a little chicken and a salad from our garden.

We found a pool to go swimming in and now we are heading into Cap Haitien to have dinner. Pray for power tonight so I can catch you all up on the happenings!

March 31st

I forgot to mention yesterday that I did my laundry!

OK, you’re thinking, Big Deal! Remember there was no power so first I had to get my water from the well. This is a physical job! Then I had to carry the water upstairs to the bathroom. I could have done the job outside, but I didn’t want to be in the sun. I had one tub of water with some laundry soap and one tub with clear water for rinsing. After soaking and scrubbing my clothes, wringing them out, rinsing and wringing again I hung them up to dry. I was exhausted. I had Susan take a picture of me because if anyone thought I was a princess before, this would prove them wrong!

Today I rode on a motorcycle between two Haitian’s, one was the driver and one was our interpreter. Each day I think I couldn’t possibly have more of an adventure, but I do! We were all working at an orphanage, building a fence, and we ran out of wire fencing. I volunteered some money to buy more fencing, which meant I had to go back to the house to get the money, which then landed me the role of going to buy the fencing. First we stopped off at a place to change my US dollars into gourds, then we went to three different building supply places before we found one open.

The orphanage was the most humbling of places. The children are so incredibly sweet, and obedient. When we arrived the children came out and lined up. We colored with them and played with them. They helped plant a garden and build the fence. When we left they sang a song to us.

They live in such meek conditions. Their home is a brick building with dirt floors. One volunteer said they were wearing the same clothes that they had on when she visited last week. There was not evidence of food anywhere. The kitchen was a small brick building outside the house. In one corner was a place to build a fire. There were several small, dirty pots. There was what looked like a charcoal pit of some sort. But no food. We brought rice and beans and decided to cook some up for them. We worry that the food will be sold.

The orphanage is surrounded by a brick wall, as are many of the buildings in Haiti. Climbing those walls were many older children, watching us as we worked and played at the orphanage. Most were wearing no shoes. One had a pair of Crocks with holes covering the soles. They were begging and I was asked for money, my sunglasses and my shoes. It is truly heartbreaking. I spent the evening contemplating their circumstances and wondering how much help we really bring these children. Does a little food and play and a garden make a difference? I want to hope that it will.

Wednesday Update

It’s been two days without power! Then at 5pm the power came on, everyone yelled “fill the buckets” (I’ll explain later), three people jumped in the shower of three bathrooms, and no lie, the power was gone 5 minutes later. 15 people with no real shower in at least two days. What a tease! And three people with shampoo in their hair that had to finish with a bucket shower.

It has been incredibly hot! No news there. Yesterday was prenatal day. I met many beautiful pregnant Haitian women. Some with babies ready to be born in the next few weeks. One woman was expecting her fourth baby and cried when she told hus the father just left and she has no where to live. A 40 year old woman with many children was relieved when we told her she wasn’t pregnant! She is probably going through menopause, since she hasn’t had a period in three months. Just like the pediatric clinic, most of the women eat very little food, drink coffee, soda and Tampico and drink very little water. We give them all vitamins and tell them to drink more water!

Yesterday was the village clinic so after prenatals and a late lunch I decided to head over there. The walk is probably at least a half mile, and just as soon as I arrived I ran into the ND student midwife and one of our interpreters, Santo. I forgot that we had a meeting with a village midwife, Madame Bwah (really don’t know about the spelling!), and had to turn around to head back to the house. After waiting for nearly an hour and she didn’t show up we decided to head back to the clinic. (Did I mention how hot it is here?) When we were with our second patient we got called to head back to the house because Madame was there waiting for us. Oh, Haitian time! (and now two round trips to the village clinic) When Suzanne and I were already headed back we realized we didn’t have an interpreter with us! This would be interesting for sure.

When we first arrived we each grabbed a Haitian/English dictionary and started saying various words. It was pretty crude and not successful. But after some time we got into a groove and really got some information from her. She has attended 75 births in the last two months. We asked what she did in a hemorrhage, how they disposed of the placenta, if she carried medications or herbs. We were quite proud of ourselves, but finally found an interpreter and found out many more things about Madame Bwah. She is quite well known and had done a substantial amount of advocating for women’s healthcare. She was willing to send patients to our clinic and even let us go to some births with her. We planned to have a family planning clinic next week if she sent some clients our way, because she said many of her clients have many babies and don’t want to have any more.

Today Susan arrived, but her luggage was delayed. After attending another village clinic we headed back to the airport with Santo and a driver. A real car this time! Not the danger of a tap tap, but an adventure still! Driving through Cap Haitien is always an adventure. The airport was tiny and when it was time to take our bags outside we were swarmed with young men trying to carry the bags and wanting money. I was warned about this but it happens so fast! Susan gave a few men a dollar each, but it was difficult to know if she paid the ones who actually carried the bags, as there were about 8 men surrounding her with their hands out.

Dinner is ready! Susan asked what we were having and I had to laugh. Beans and rice again!

P.S. When the power comes on we need to fill the buckets in the bathroom so when we are without power we can bucket shower and flush the toilet without having to go to the well and carry it in.

P.S.S. It has taken many attempts to get this posted as the power continues to come on for about 5 minutes each time. One time I did get a shower in. Each time the power goes off we get up and open the windows, each time it goes off we need to close the windows and turn the fans and air conditioner on.

My First Clinic Day

We have been without power most of the day, so I've been unable to update anything. Now it is very late and I should be sleeping, but when the power came on I jumped on the computer. Since the power was off all day the house was very hot and stuffy. I tried to sleep outside, but the smell of smoke was too overwhelming. It is probably garbage burning. There is garbage everywhere! It is also very loud outside, but the stars are amazing!

Today was my first day of clinics and we saw pediatric patients. There is a large group of Naturopathic students here so they were in charge of patients. I was along for the ride, but was able to contribute on many cases. We saw a baby that is 7 months old and weighs 10 pounds. Dr. Sean wrote about her on his blog. She lost one pound in the last two weeks and we suspected her sister, who is caring for her, may be selling the formula the clinic gave her at her last two visits.

The irony to this was that this was our last patient before our lunch break, we were all exhausted from being hungry and hot. How dare us! I don't know how to explain how this feels, to know that you will eat soon and they will not.

I would love to tell you about every patient I saw today, but there is not time. One five year old boy saw us at 2pm and had only had a cup of coffee today. He had not eaten any food and typically eats one meal a day. He was a beautiful boy, falling asleep on his mothers lap. I'm sure he was starving. This is the typical child in Haiti, I believe.

We went for a walk in the evening, to the village where we will hold a clinic tomorrow. What we saw on the way is almost indescribable. On the street are cars, truck and motorcyles, whizzing by and honking! Sometimes it feels like you are inches from them. And then just inches or a couple feet on the other side are various animals; Just tonight I saw a pig, goats, horses, cows, dogs, and various sizes of chickens. There are people everywhere! They spend their days outside their homes (shacks, most of them). They stared at us white people walking along their streets, some children laughing and pointing and calling us "blanco's". The funniest were the children who yelled in english, "hey you blancos". Also funny was the couple on a motorcycle who stopped and asked us to take their picture. We thought they were going to ask us for money, but they didn't. And neither did anyone else. Different experience than being in the city of Cap Haitien.

We just waved and smiled and greeted with "bonswa", good evening, and everyone answered back. It was an experience like none other.

The heat here is incredible. Really, it's the humidity. With no power we can't flush the toilet or take a shower. I chose to take a bucket shower after the walk because my clothes were soaked with sweat. The cool water was shocking at first, but so refreshing.

The food has been wonderful. Various fresh fruits every morning with breakfast. But I must admit I'm already sick of rice and beans. My gut is crying out! But again, how can I complain with three meals a day and a suitcase full of healthy snacks.

Oh, so much more I want to share, but I must get some sleep. It is so late and I think I'm the only one still awake. Tomorrow is another day. And one of these days I hope I can get some pictures up here.

I have safely arrived!

My adventure from Santiago to Cap Haitien was interesting to say the least!

I took a taxi from my hotel to the bus station, but ended up at the wrong bus station. I had to figure out how to get to the right one and try not to panic. Thankful I gave myself some extra time. The ticket lady and I were not communicating well, but I was pretty sure she had told me there was a bus that would take me to the right station, she just didn't tell me when. After waiting a few minutes I started to panic. I called Mario and had him talk to her, just as the bus pulled up. A guy came and grabbed me and my stuff and loaded me on the bus.

When I arrived at the correct bus station I had no idea where to go. I went to the two obvious windows and neither woman could understand me at all. I called Mario again, she told him I needed to go around the corner but I was sure I didn't see anything over there. A man who spoke english, spanish and creole came to my aid. He took me around the corner and it was just a little door with barely a sign. I'm sure that in my panic I would never have seen it. I had left my luggage with a friend of the guy who helped me. How crazy am I? But I didn't know what else to do. I could not manage those three bags myself in that crowd!

I got my ticket and they kept my passport. Hmmm....I wasn't sure about this. But my new friend assured me this was the way it was. They would return my passport to me when we crossed the border. He then took me to a waiting room that was slightly air conditioned. I had 40 minutes to wait and prayed I would hear and understand when they called my bus. About 10 minutes before I decided not to chance it and just took my luggage out to where the buses arrived and departed. I stuck out like a sore thumb. Everyone knew I was confused and needed help. People were not really friendly, but there were a couple who made sure I was at the right bus.

As soon as I got on the bus I saw two Americans who looked happy to see me. They waved and one asked, " MamaBaby Haiti?" YES! I found two friends who were also going to the clinic. They were part of the group of ND's that I thought I was going to meet up with in Santiago, but they flew into Santo Domingo. The rest of the group was left behind because they had a lot of lost luggage they had to wait for.

The bus ride was comfortable. They served us lunch, which was quite good. The scenery was beautiful. When we crossed the border we stopped and took care of the immigration paperwork, etc. We stopped before the border and just after. I can not even tell you the magnitude of how different each side looks. As soon as we crossed into Haiti is was barren, dusty and poor looking. There was a river with hundreds of people washing clothes and bathing/playing in the water. From that point on it was something I have never experienced. I didn't want to close my eyes and nap anymore, afraid I would miss some part of the experience. My first moment's in Haiti I was filled with emotion, but I'm not sure what I was feeling. I just wanted to take it all in.

When we were driving through Cap Haitien is when things got really crazy. There were so many people on every street, so many cars that drive with no rules, people and children walking on the edge of the road and selling their wares. Busy and loud!

We arrived at the bus station and again I had this overwhelming feeling of gratitude that I was not alone at this moment. When we got our luggage I didn't even know which direction to go. We went through a small door where there was a "guard" with a rifle. The hallway we walked through was so small I could have never gotten my three bags, backpack, purse and self through there. Patrick and Kara helped me and we were all loaded down but got through the doors. Once outside we were immediately on the street full of people and cars. We decided to cross the street to a little park and wait there. At that time we were welcomed by children begging, and then an old woman who was persistent. I was told to not make eye contact and grateful for that little bit of wisdom. It did make it easier to deal with.

I wanted to be aware of everything I was feeling and experiencing. The smell was hot, smoke, dust, exhaust, food. The air was thick with heat and humidity and dust. It was loud, with people and honking and yelling. It was crowded everywhere you looked.

We waited about 30 minutes for our ride, which ended up being a tap tap, because the MamaBaby car had died. I rode in the front while everyone else rode in the back. I wish I'd been in the back, too. In the front you see what's going on and it's not pretty. I was thinking "I could easlily die in this little truck". I think seeing things from behind would have been easier. Patrick said he thinks if he'd been in the front he would have thrown up! I was a little concerned when someone opened my door and tried to get in when we stopped for a moment. But there is not a lot of stopping, just going and honking and going, no matter who or what is in your way.

As we pulled in front of MamaBaby the little tap tap high centered itself on a pothole. But we had made it!

The house is comfortable, The food is wonderful and I'm getting to know the friendly people. I felt a lot of culture shock last night. I was exhausted but too tired and stimulated to sleep. The heat reminded me of being a little girl sleeping in my upstairs bedroom, hot and stuffy.

But this morning is a beautiful day and who knows what's in store.

I made it to Santiago, Dominican Republic

I was hoping to post a few pictures, but for some reason my computer isn't reading the SD card. I brought the cord and it doesn't want to read that either.

I left home Thursday night and took the red eye to New York. I got pretty nauseous, which has never happened to me before. Probably the combination of nerves, a very bumpy flight and the sleeping pill I took. Needless to say I didn't really sleep. I really thought I was going to throw up! Towards the end I had some nuts and ginger ale and that helped a lot.

When I landed in New York it was still dark. I forced myself to eat some breakfast, then enjoyed a beautiful sunrise.

The flight to Santiago was much better. I dozed off and on quite a bit. It was quite an experience to be on a flight full of Latino's. They are much louder than Americans. There were lots of little kids. And when the plane lands EVERYONE claps. It was so awesome!

Getting through customs was much easier than I expected. Though, I don't know what I expected. My shuttle was waiting for me when I walked out of the airport and I got checked into my hotel with ease. I spent the afternoon trying not to fall asleep (unsuccessfully), then finally gave up and shut everything down around 7pm. I got a great night's sleep and had a wonderful breakfast this morning.

This morning I'm feeling a little nervous again. As I was eating my breakfast sitting in this beautiful hotel I was pondering what the next two weeks will be like. Nothing like this I am sure!

I hope that I have brought the right clothes and equipment. I hope the language won't be such a barrier. I hope that I will be able to help those around me and be of help to them. I hope that I will be open to whatever comes my way. I'm trying to have an open mind, open heart and open spirit to what this journey may bring to me.

I have to say again how much I appreciate all the love and support that has been given to me. My family is so willing to make this sacrifice for me to do this and for that I am grateful. Please continue to pray for me, those I am working with and the people of Haiti.

Orevwa!

48 hours to go!

Today was a busy day! After a wonderful home visit with a client that I pray will wait three more weeks to have her baby, I stocked up on some frozen food for my family, bought a mosquito net, cleaned house for prenatal day tomorrow and finished packing.

I'm about 98% done packing and that feels good. Just need to load up my back pack for the plane and add a little more food and I think I'm done.

Tomorrow is a long day of work, so I'm grateful I will have Thursday to take care of last minute details. Need to go to the bank to get some cash, make a list of emergency contact numbers and I'm sure LOTS of other details that will keep me awake tonight. I'm not having any trouble falling asleep, just staying asleep. I'm still waking very early with my mind full.

Mario secured my hotel reservation in Santiago on both legs of my journey, as well as my bus ride. I feel much better knowing that is taken care of. The hotel has a free shuttle and asked for my flight information, so they will be waiting for me at the airport. I'm looking forward to a brief R&R by the pool before heading into Haiti on Saturday.

Can't believe this is really happening!

Wow!
Four days and I will be on my way.

I have begun packing my personal belongings and I'm proud to say that I think everything is going to fit in my small carry on suitcase. Packing the supplies that have been donated is another story. My office has been taken over and I don't know where to begin. Susan and Nancy are coming over Tuesday night and we will figure it all out.

I am so proud to say that I have raised $1165 in donations. I feel so grateful that my friends and family have shown so much support for a cause that I believe in. I do not have adequate words to express my feelings. So thank you!

I have been having some crazy dreams. They usually involve missing a flight or a bus, figuring out language or travel barriers, being late...the usual stress dream. Last night's was the best...I forgot to bring my camera so I was driving around Haiti trying to find a store that would likely speak English and sell cameras for a decent price. I found a camera but it cost $116 dollars and I thought that was way too much money. I was trying to figure out if the price was in US dollars or Haitian dollars. I then decided to try another store to compare prices (oh, my! This is sooo me.). I was then thinking about how ridiculous it was that I was even considering not buying a camera because of the cost, because how could I be in Haiti without a camera?

These dreams explain my extreme fatigue today! Melatonin tonight and hopefully a good night's rest. This week it is on to last minute details and crossing things off of my to-do list.

I've become overwhelmed by the Haitian Creole language tapes and have taken a break. I'm trying to decide if I should carry on, or just start over and get the basics down again. Any suggestions?

Thanks again my dear friends! I feel your love!

Donations are Coming in!

It's been a great week for donations! I have received boxes of goods (vitamins, medications, book, supplies, etc.) as well as several cash donations. I had a goal in mind of how much money I would like to raise and today I surpassed that goal.

$1090 to date!

Every time I receive a donation my heart swells with gratefulness. Grateful for the sacrifice you have made and grateful that you care. I have committed that 100% of the money donated will go to supplies and medications that my group will be transporting to Haiti. Whatever money is left over will be donated directly to MamaBaby Haiti.



Thank you again! It is not too late to still donate. I will be leaving one week from today.

Help for Haiti Shower

The fundraiser was few in numbers, but I had a lot of fun. Thank you to my friends who put it together and took care of the decorations, set up and food. It was wonderful. My basement began flooding as soon as I was getting ready to leave for the party, but we caught it quickly and were able to fix the problem before too much water got in.




I invited two women who have already been to Haiti and worked at MamaBaby Haiti. I was so grateful that Kim and Korina took the time to come and share their experience with us. The slide show they gave was wonderful. I was soaking up the whole experience and it felt surreal to think that I would be there in just two weeks from then!

These two ladies were fun and entertaining and I can't wait to hang out with them again!!

We didn't have enough time to make the hygiene kits so the kids at church made them on Sunday. I am very sad that I forgot to bring my camera and take pictures of them.

Updated list of needed items

I'm looking forward to our fundraiser tonight! A friend that adopted a child from Haiti is making us some Haitian food and there will be other goodies, too. I will try to remember to take pictures and post them tomorrow.

I am so grateful for all the donations received so far!

Today I received an updated list of items needed at the clinic. Highlighted items are those of most need.

Fracture pans (Edie thinks these would be great for us because they would fit between a woman's legs and you can catch all the blood and after birth right in it)

Ear Specula for peds & adults (lots and lots to fit a 3.5v MacroView Diagnostic Otoscope)

Tongue depressors (can never have too many!)

Temporal thermometers - preferably the ones with the silver ionized antimicrobial tip

Epsom salts - we've lowered a few BP's with this alone - not super urgent but want in the next month or two

Sharps Containers - at least 3-4 - not super urgent but want in the next month or two

Acupuncture needles in various sizes but especially 1 cun, 1.5 cun & 3 cun

Auricular acupuncture needles (preferably ones with a guide tube)

Normal Saline IV's

IV Start Packs - not super urgent but want in the next month or two

More hygiene kits (usually include a toothbrush, toothpaste, wash cloth, bar of soap & sometimes shampoo/conditioner) in a plastic bag - not super urgent but want in the next month or two

Bars of soap - the more natural the better

Bottles of shampoo & conditioner - the more natural the better

Toothbrushes & toothpaste

Medium sized gloves - the most popular size & the size we have the least of - not super urgent but want in the next month or two

Soy based formulas for babies who need formula but are sensitive to dairy - not super urgent but want in the next month or two

Syringes - especially 1cc, 3cc, 5cc, & 10cc

Needles - especially 18 gauge, & something smaller like 22-23 or even a 25....also butterflies are awesome but expensive

Surgical scissors (could really use surgical kits but we're really low on scissors for some reason)

Scalpels & blades (sizes 10, 11 & 15)

Glucometers with lancets & strips (would be awesome to give out to patients if we could but I know how expensive the strips are) - not super urgent but want in the next month or two

Snacks :)

Other canned/boxed foods - the more American the better :)

Drink mixes

Supplements we'd like so far (again this isn't yet complete but it's a start)

5-HTP

Vitamin A Drops

Bio-Vegetarian (Priority One) - not super urgent but want in the next month or two

Artemisinin

B-Complex

B-6

B-12

Vitamin C (we like the 500mg chewable ones from Costco or something with lots of C per cap that tastes good for the kiddos)

Calcium/Magnesium supplements

Charcoal Caps

Chromium

CoQ10

Vitamin D3

DHEA

Vitamin E

Fiber Flow (Wise Woman Herbals)

Folirinse/Folate

GABA

Glutathione

Glycine

Thyroid Support (Pure Encapsulations)

Iron

Magnesium supplements

Trace Minerals (liquid)

Pregnenolone

Selenium

Tyrosine

Zinc - not super urgent but want in the next month or two

Digestive Enzymes (Papain & bromelain)

Urinary Defense Formula (Priority 1)

Cranberry

D-Mannose

Adult Multi Vitamins

Prenatals (I know Jennifer sent another email about this and we'll take all the adult multis people can cram in their suitcases - we can never have too many since we would love to be able to give pregnant mamas enough multis to have them every day and not just one or two weeks a month)

Juglans Nigra - tincture or caps are fine

Clove - tincture preferred

Blood pressure meds - Methyldopa & Libidolol are best for pregnancy & could also use some HCTZ & Nifedipine for hypertensive crises

Vitamin K (Christine McGraw is bringing some but we can always use more)

Garlic capsules or gel caps (lots, we use this all the time)

Augmentin

Not so urgent but we need more clipboards, pens, a 3-hole punch & page protectors like the ones that Des sent for charts (like a few hundred since we have so many patients)

Donations

First of all I just want to say a huge THANK YOU to those who have already donated money. I am making a plan of what items I will purchase and bring with me to Haiti. I plan to bring as much as I can carry!

I just added a Paypal donation button
to this blog.

I'm hoping this will make it
easier for those who wish to donate funds!

(look to the right)--------->>>

Things are falling into place and though I have some nerves I am mostly getting excited! It looks like I will be traveling into the Dominican Republic and meeting up with a group of Naturopathic students from Seattle. They will also be working at the MamaBaby clinic with me, and we will be able to travel by bus together from Santiago, DR to Cap Haitien, Haiti.

This week I am looking forward to a shopping trip with my friend Susan and her friend Nancy, who will be joining us at the clinic. We will be looking for both personal and clinic items that we need for our trip. Susan found some Creole language CD's that I will be downloading and listening to the next couple of weeks.

My most pressing things to do in the next two weeks will be:
*Finish my CPR and NRP classes that I stupidly let lapse and need to re-certify in before I leave.
*Figure out if I can find a phone that will work in Haiti.
*Gather supplies

I won't bother to list my never ending list of other things to do. Besides, I might start freaking out if I look too far into the future. One day at a time!

Items needed in Haiti

For those of you who would like to donate to my Haiti trip I am accepting cash donations to purchase much needed items.

If you prefer to donate the items themselves here is quite an extensive list of suggested items. Please choose what you'd like to donate and contact me for pick up.

Anti-diarrheal medication

Antacids

Anti-fungal cream (Lotrimin)

Benadryl

De-wormer (ALBENDAZOLE)

Emergen-C

Grapefruit seed extract

Sunblock (30 spf or higher)

Medication for headache, fever or colds (Tylenol, Ibuprofen, etc)

Hydrocortisone cream

Neosporin

Insect repellant

Hand sanitizer

Gloves (non-latex, sterile or non-sterile)

Suture (3-0 vicryl on a CT1 needle)

Lactated ringers

IV tubing sets & IV catheters

1cc or 3cc needles

9 volt batteries

Pregnancy tests

Urine dipsticks

Sterile gauze

Instrument sterilization packs

Cord clamps, cord tape, cord bands

Hemostats

Cord scissors

Episiotomy scissors

Needle holders

Suture scissors

Surgical towels

Washable chux pads

Large absorbable chux

Lidocaine

Pitocin

Cytotec

Erythromycin

Multi-vitamins

Prenatal vitamins

Iron

Calcium/magnesium

Receiving blankets

Cloth diapers, pins

Women’s underwear in various sizes

Women’s cotton nightgowns

Women’s cotton summer dresses

Children’s underwear (preferably cotton Hanes boxers for boys as they double as shorts)

Hygiene kits (gallon ziplock with washcloth, soap, toothpaste and toothbrush)

A Letter to my Friends

Dear Friends & Family,

As you know, on January 12, 2010, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake rocked southern Haiti. Millions of Haitians were hurt and homeless and struggling to survive. This catastrophe has hit people already living in a country ranked by the United Nations as the poorest nation in the Western hemisphere. The lack of skilled obstetrical workers makes Haiti the most dangerous place in the Western hemisphere to have a baby. According to the World Health Organization statistics, 670 women die for every 100,000 births. This rate is 60 times higher than in the US.

Since hearing about this disaster, I have felt compelled to travel to Haiti and volunteer my midwifery skills to the women, children and families who are suffering. Over the last year several of my friends have traveled to Haiti to donate their time, money and skills. Several of these friends were so inspired by their work in Haiti that they have returned many times and built a beautiful birth center in Cap Hatien, Haiti. I invite you to look at their website and see the work they are doing and the services they are providing to the people of Haiti. (www.mamababyhaiti.org)

There are many organizations doing good work in Haiti. I have chosen to work with Mama Baby Haiti at this time because I know the people that have created this organization. I trust them and believe in their purpose. I know them to be people of integrity and great spiritual strength. I will be leaving for Haiti around March 25^th and staying for about two weeks.

It is requested that volunteers bring as many supplies as they can to support the efforts in Haiti, as well as pay their own travel fees to and from Haiti. It is with this in mind that I humbly ask for your support. I am seeking cash donations to buy the necessary supplies that are needed to run the clinic in Haiti.

No donation is too small. Every dollar will be greatly appreciated and judiciously used! Donations can be mailed to me or accepted via my paypal account (kelli@fullbloommidwifery.com). For those preferring to donate goods please email me and I will get you the list when I receive it.

I have set up a blog to share my experiences. Please check it for updates as I prepare to leave. While in Haiti I hope to post photographs and experiences. I appreciate your support. Please pray for the people of Haiti. Please pray for my safe travels and for my family, who are graciously supporting my desire to do this.

With Peace and Love,

Kelli McIntosh

15203 Se Linden Ln.

Milwaukie, Oregon 97267

503-652-0645

www.kellimidwife.blogspot.com

A Video Message from Mama Baby Haiti

Here is a video look at the birth center I will be working at in Haiti!

Making Plans

This is it!

After a couple of attempts to plan a trip to Haiti it is finally happening. I was encouraged to go by my friend Susan who will be traveling with me. Traveling with someone helps to alleviate some of the fears I had about going to Haiti. And at this point I'm just plain excited!

It's kind of a miracle that we both have time off call and are able to go. The way things have fallen into place feels good. I love working with Susan and this will be a great adventure to share with her.

At the moment I don't have a lot of details. Just what I've found on the Mama Baby Haiti website. In the past I was considering going to another birth center, but because Mama Baby Haiti was founded by my friends and local midwives this is the best choice for me. I am amazed at what they have accomplished in the last year!

I am requesting donations of money and supplies to take to Haiti. I do not know what supplies are needed at this time, but as I find out I will ask for specifics. If you want to donate please contact me.

I have an airline ticket donated at this time. I am feeling a bit uncomfortable with timing, though. I need to get to Fort Lauderdale around spring break and it looks like many of the flights are full and I will be traveling standby on a family pass. If anyone has air miles they are willing to donate please contact me.

More posts to come as I find out details!