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Joia Mukherjee, MD, MPH, stood in the streets of devastated Port-au-Prince, Haiti next to a statue of a man holding a conch shell to his lips with his right hand and a machete in his left. This statue called "Neg Mawon" in the country's native Creole language represents the free man, who is using the shell to rally his fellow Haitians.
Amidst the mounds of rubble beside the sculpture and near Port-au-Prince's destroyed presidential palace, a kerchief-clad Haitian woman touched the physician's shoulder, then wrapped her arms around her and spoke these words in Haitian Creole: The free man will never be beaten.
"This is the greatest resource of Haiti, it is not material wealth, but it is actually the indomitable spirit of the Haitian people," Dr. Mukherjee said.
The words have significant meaning, acknowledged Dr. Mukherjee, who is medical director of the Boston-based relief organization Partners in Health. It's the strength of the Haitian people exemplified near the surviving statue, she added, that will propel the country forward.
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| Partners in Heath on the scene in Port-au-Prince Haiti.(photo/courtesy Partners in Health) |
The medical director offered her remarks recently during the global advocacy organization ONE Campaign's media and member call-in to focus on ending Haiti's large debt and encourage relief monies to come in the form of grants, not debt-incurring loans.
Dr. Mukherjee joined with other relief leaders who, like herself, recently returned from the medical effort underway in Haiti to treat the injured and assess the Haitian people's long-term needs as attention now turns to rebuilding the country's health.
"The solutions from Haiti's problems will come from the Haitian people," Dr. Mukherjee said, noting a resolution that includes mobilizing and organizing civil society to participate in the process of health.
Former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, MD, a surgeon who treated injured earthquake survivors in a hospital near Port-Au-Prince, performed surgical interventions on patients who presented with severe trauma, crush injuries and broken bones. One memorable patient is a surviving young girl who was trapped under concrete when her school building collapsed. Her father went looking for her and dug her out of the debris after two days working with a pick tool.
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| Former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, MD, treats a young patient. (photo/courtesy Hope Through Healing Hands) |
Medical intervention is only one of the health needs within the Haitian community, Dr. Frist explained. Clean water and nutrition are equally vital for appropriate care, he added.
Assistance in these areas is developing. Water and food are top priorities for the American Red Cross, said David Meltzer, who is senior vice president for the organization's international services.
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| Joia Mukherjee, MD, MPH, is the medical director for Partners in Health. (photo/courtesy Partners in Health) |
"The water supply is extremely compromised," he reported.
The American Red Cross is now placing attention to shelter since Meltzer estimates up to a million Haitians are homeless and April begins the country's Hurricane season.
"The aid pipeline is widening that is good news, but certainly the Red Cross and other international non-governmental organizations will be there for years to come, as we attempt not just to build Haiti back, but build it back better," Meltzer said.
Scott Hatfield is multimedia editor of www.advanceweb.com. He can be reached at shatfield@advanceweb.com.
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