As a follow up to the last post, Cholera has been on the rise in Haiti with the spring rain but good work is being done to fight it!
Last week, Partners In Health began vaccinating Haitians in rural community, providing them with protection against cholera that will last for up to three years. They worked with the Haitian government to get the vaccine project moving before the worst of the rainy season — and the almost inevitable spike in cases of cholera. Now, they are working to build a movement to use the vaccine across Haiti — and make investments in water and sanitation — to put an end to the world’s worst cholera epidemic.
Check out this video showing the project in action!
Haiti Cholera Vaccine Project – Delivery Video
Here at the Haiti Outreach Program we made our recent investment in water and sanitation with an installation of another water filtration system in Boucan Carre the week of March 14th. Our team went down and conducted training and education on important water issues in the schools and with any group of people they met along the way, including parents, teachers, nuns, and more. Ideas for future systems and possibly another well are being developed in cooperation the Mayor. We are so excited about these new developments and we thank you so much for your support. Check out Diane Richard’s trip report below!
Hi Everyone! This is a little late but here is our site report for our visit to Haiti: March 14-21.
Our visit to Haiti was most productive! God at Work! The group was made up of Harlan Richards, Jean Galyon and Diane Richards. Harlan successfully installed the water filtration system in two days with the assistance of our Haitian friends: Jude Louis, Duqueson, Father Duportal and Frankel. On Sunday after Mass, Father blessed the system and we shared clean water with about 50 parishioners. Father, Frankel, and the cooks are trained in cleaning water containers and operating the system so it appears it will be staffed adequately. We spoke with Michel at the Baptist School and the Mayor about future systems. It appears from the progress we observed and the discussion with Michel that the Baptist School will be our next installation. The Mayor is investigating with the Haitian government the possibility of accessing a new spring. We had the opportunity to meet with the government contingent and give one of the engineers a tour of the rectory system. Building a cistern and piping the water to the community will take time but more water is needed for this community, especially in the dry season. Jean and I spoke with many groups and individuals about the importance of drinking filtered water, taking care of their filtered water container, and other health issues related to water. Some of the groups included: a parent group at the Nun’s school, about 50 high school students, students at the public school, and a group of people having a meeting at the rectory. We also spent a day with the vocational students training them to use an electric sewing machine we brought with us. I spoke with the Nun’s about the importance of washing hands, especially after using the latrine. Jude Louis and Harlan put spigots in 5 gallon buckets for handwashing at the school. If this seems to work, educational materials regarding the importance of washing hands will be shared with teachers on our next visit. We learned from many sources that the villagers would be very reluctant to drink river water that has been filtered for fear of cholera so we need to educate before using river water in a filtration system. Julio translated for Jean and myself and did a fantastic job. Jude Luis has helped us install the three systems in BC and we feel he is capable of installing systems by himself.
Have a great day!
Diane
Reports on the Fight against Cholera: PIH Vaccine Project and Filtration System Trip Report
As a follow up to the last post, Cholera has been on the rise in Haiti with the spring rain but good work is being done to fight it!
Last week, Partners In Health began vaccinating Haitians in rural community, providing them with protection against cholera that will last for up to three years. They worked with the Haitian government to get the vaccine project moving before the worst of the rainy season — and the almost inevitable spike in cases of cholera. Now, they are working to build a movement to use the vaccine across Haiti — and make investments in water and sanitation — to put an end to the world’s worst cholera epidemic.
Check out this video showing the project in action!
Haiti Cholera Vaccine Project – Delivery Video
Here at the Haiti Outreach Program we made our recent investment in water and sanitation with an installation of another water filtration system in Boucan Carre the week of March 14th. Our team went down and conducted training and education on important water issues in the schools and with any group of people they met along the way, including parents, teachers, nuns, and more. Ideas for future systems and possibly another well are being developed in cooperation the Mayor. We are so excited about these new developments and we thank you so much for your support. Check out Diane Richard’s trip report below!
Hi Everyone! This is a little late but here is our site report for our visit to Haiti: March 14-21.
Our visit to Haiti was most productive! God at Work! The group was made up of Harlan Richards, Jean Galyon and Diane Richards. Harlan successfully installed the water filtration system in two days with the assistance of our Haitian friends: Jude Louis, Duqueson, Father Duportal and Frankel. On Sunday after Mass, Father blessed the system and we shared clean water with about 50 parishioners. Father, Frankel, and the cooks are trained in cleaning water containers and operating the system so it appears it will be staffed adequately. We spoke with Michel at the Baptist School and the Mayor about future systems. It appears from the progress we observed and the discussion with Michel that the Baptist School will be our next installation. The Mayor is investigating with the Haitian government the possibility of accessing a new spring. We had the opportunity to meet with the government contingent and give one of the engineers a tour of the rectory system. Building a cistern and piping the water to the community will take time but more water is needed for this community, especially in the dry season. Jean and I spoke with many groups and individuals about the importance of drinking filtered water, taking care of their filtered water container, and other health issues related to water. Some of the groups included: a parent group at the Nun’s school, about 50 high school students, students at the public school, and a group of people having a meeting at the rectory. We also spent a day with the vocational students training them to use an electric sewing machine we brought with us. I spoke with the Nun’s about the importance of washing hands, especially after using the latrine. Jude Louis and Harlan put spigots in 5 gallon buckets for handwashing at the school. If this seems to work, educational materials regarding the importance of washing hands will be shared with teachers on our next visit. We learned from many sources that the villagers would be very reluctant to drink river water that has been filtered for fear of cholera so we need to educate before using river water in a filtration system. Julio translated for Jean and myself and did a fantastic job. Jude Luis has helped us install the three systems in BC and we feel he is capable of installing systems by himself.
Have a great day!
Diane