‘People moved out and stayed’
Droves still flock to rural hospital run by Durangoan’s kinBy Ann Butler Herald Staff Writer
Article Last Updated: Tuesday, January 11, 2011 11:32pm
When the earthquake struck late afternoon Jan. 12, 2010, Durangoan Dr. Wendy Grant knew immediately how she would help.
In 1956, her grandparents founded Hôpital Albert Schweitzer 90 miles from Port-au-Prince, and Grant’s family spent countless vacations in Haiti.
She knew the hospital would be flooded with cases from the city where several hospitals were destroyed, and money and medical supplies would be sorely needed. She put her energy into raising money and getting the word out about the hospital and its work.
A year later, the hospital continues to serve more people than ever.
“People moved out and stayed there, so we’re serving about one-third more patients on a daily basis,” Grant said.
The cholera outbreak, which began in late October and has killed about 3,400 people, is adding to the hospital’s load.
“We still have quite a few cholera patients,” she said. “We’re getting about 40 new adult cases each day and 10 to 12 children.”
Her uncle and cousin treated a cholera patient in a remote area in the mountains just last week, Grant said.
“Some people came running carrying a guy on a door, which they often use for stretchers,” she said. “They resuscitated him and got him down to the hospital. It’s all about getting fluids in and distance – many patients are like this man and hours away from medical facilities.”
Since the quake, the hospital has become involved in community projects, such as sports programs for youths. Grant’s son, Ian Bowers, will be in Haiti soon to work on one of those programs through “project week” at Animas High School, where he is a sophomore. Grant said other organizations are assisting the hospital with the community initiatives.
“We’re feeling good about the resources now, both financial and human,” she said. “We have new contacts, new friends and new alliances with other organizations in Haiti.”
Those resources and alliances helped the hospital deal with both the cholera epidemic and people injured during flooding in March, September and November.
“Every time we need an extra doctor or two, we have more volunteers than we have room for,” Grant said. “We put a call out for two, whether it’s medical or surgical, and we get 12 volunteers. We have all these doctors willing to come on short notice.”
Grant expects donations to go down this year.
“Contributions will be way down in 2011,” she said, “but the need goes on.”
abutler@durango herald.com
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