OneWorld.net (U.S.)

WASHINGTON, Apr 16 (OneWorld.net) - Haiti is experiencing an "immediate public health crisis," said a medical humanitarian group as international donors met to discuss the country's economic and social development this week.

• School children in Haiti. At the international donor conference, Haitian Prime Minister Pierre-Louis appealed for funds for education. © Mikelli! (flickr)"It's unacceptable today that Haiti's poorest have no access to affordable and quality emergency trauma and obstetrical care services," said Brian Phillip Moller, who heads a trauma and rehabilitation center run by the medical aid group Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) in Haiti. "While the Haitian government and donors focus on the economic development of the country they can no longer ignore the desperate needs of impoverished Haitians for quality and accessible public medical care." 

• Over 30 international donors that met Tuesday in Washington, DC pledged $324 million to assist Haiti with disaster relief, widespread food shortages, and economic recovery. The amount fell short of the $900 million Haitian Prime Minister Michele Pierre-Louis said the country needed to fund education, infrastructure, health, debt payments, and other items over the next two years. "This small nation of 9 million people is on a brink," said U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the conference. "And it, as well as this region, will be shaped to a large extent by the decisions that we make." Clinton, who is visiting Haiti today, also noted that the United States is already providing approximately $290 million dollars in non-emergency aid to the island nation this year. BBC News and the Associated Press report.

• Haiti has the highest malnutrition, child and infant mortality, and HIV/AIDS rates in the Americas. Almost 54 percent of the population lives in extreme poverty and 40 percent of households are unable to purchase adequate food. Violent riots in April 2008 encapsulated the severe impact of the global food crisis on the struggling nation, and the humanitarian crisis has only intensified since four tropical storms swept across the country the following August and September. For more information on poverty, development, and human rights in Haiti, visit OneWorld.net's Haiti country guide.

Haiti's public health system failing patients

Donors must not ignore critical gaps in medical services for impoverished Haitians.

From: Medecins Sans Frontieres

© Espen Rasmussen
A mother and child in the recovery room of the MSF 60-bed Trinite surgical trauma hospital in Port-au-Prince. MSF runs three hospitals in the capital and emergency response programs in Haiti at a cost of more than 13 million euros (US$17.5 million) per year.

MSF calls on the Haitian government and international donors to immediately implement concrete measures to improve access to health care for the Haitian population.

"It's unacceptable today that Haiti's poorest have no access to affordable and quality emergency trauma and obstetrical care services," said Brian Phillip Moller, head of mission for MSF's Trinité trauma and rehabilitation center. "While the Haitian government and donors focus on the economic development of the country they can no longer ignore the desperate needs of impoverished Haitians for quality and accessible public medical care."

Despite improved stability in the last two years, Port-au-Prince's poorest residents are still highly dependent on MSF's free emergency health-care services. Fees charged by public and private health structures make care unaffordable for most people. Public hospital and clinics are often plagued by management problems, strikes, and shortages of staff, drug and medical supplies.

"Our medical structures are overwhelmed by patients and sometimes we have no other choice but to send patients to other public hospitals, even though they will face many obstacles to get treated," said Massimiliano Cosci, head of mission for MSF projects in Martissant. "Many patients tell us stories that there were no drugs in the structures or no staff to receive them or that they were sent back home because the structures were full. In many cases, they had to abandon treatment for lack of money to cover the costs. For patients in need of lifesaving care, this can be fatal. The situation is very alarming."

Often, patients choose to stay home because they do not have affordable options. This was evident in early February when MSF's emergency obstetric hospital closed for two weeks to move to a new location.

"After assessing the situation during the closure of our hospital we discovered that many women had nowhere to turn for obstetric care," said Hans Van Dillen, head of mission for MSF's Jude Ann emergency obstetrical hospital. "At its peak, MSF's Jude Ann hospital was delivering 1,600 babies per month with nearly half of these cases involving life-threatening conditions for mother and child."

MSF started providing emergency care when violence in Port-au-Prince limited access to health care for its population. Today, although the security situation has improved, the health needs of the vulnerable population of Port-au-Prince remain largely unaddressed.

MSF invests more than 13 million euros (US$17.5 million) per year in its emergency medical programs in Haiti. MSF's obstetric hospital currently manages 40 percent of all obstetric emergencies for vulnerable women in Port-au-Prince, while MSF's Trinité hospital treated close to 17,950 trauma cases in 2008, and has the only adequate "burns unit" in Haiti. Likewise, 16,950 medical emergency cases were treated at MSF's hospital in the slum Martissant in 2008, where no other public health services exist.

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