Haiti

Established: 2005
Specialty: Pediatric Orthopedics
Number of Operations Annually: 100

CURE makes regular trips every 3 months to Haiti from our hospital in the Dominican Republic. Each quarter Dr. Scott Nelson, CURE Medical Director in Santo Domingo, travels to Cap Haitien in northern Haiti, the second largest city in the country. There he evaluates disabled children, performs surgeries and trains national medical professionals at the Hospital Universitaire Justinien, a government teaching hospital and referral center for the northern part of the country.

Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere and has only a fraction of the physicians per capita of that seen in other Latin American countries. There are 42 orthopedic surgeons in Haiti and only one who is specialized in children. Most of the surgeons are very poorly equipped and lack proper training. Only a fraction of the injured and disabled patients in this region are receiving needed operations by the local doctors.    The remaining patients go untreated often times remaining disabled for life with problems that could have been easily treated.

Even without a permanent facility, CURE's impact on Haiti is being felt. Due to the great needs, Dr. Nelson and team typically operate day and night with very little rest during their weeklong trips to Cap Haitien. While working within an existing infrastructure we are able to participate in the training of many young Haitian doctors rotating through the university hospital.  We have also trained several local orthopedic technicians on the Ponseti method for treatment of clubfoot.  Through the generosity of Bridgeway Foundation, CURE has been able to make some significant physical plant improvements at the hospital including the creation of a reliable backup power supply and running water for the operating room amongst others.