American Baptist International Ministries (IM) missionaries have responded to the immediate medical needs resulting from the January 12 Haiti earthquake. Dr. Steve James, IM missionary in Haiti, and Kristy Engel, IM missionary in the Dominican Republic, have created response teams and ministered to earthquake victims in Christianville and Port-au-Prince.
James’ work has been at the Haiti Health Ministries Christianville Clinic, approximately five miles from the earthquake epicenter. Although their homes and the clinic were destroyed, the Christianville medical staff worked 30 hours non-stop through the night of the earthquake, giving primary medical care to hundreds of injured people that appeared in the front yard. On January 14, James and his team of four took over care of the wounded that continued to come every day, freeing the local staff to organize, salvage and move medical supplies and equipment out of the damaged clinic and set up a makeshift clinic in a nearby undamaged school building. James reports, “We were so inspired to see so many Haitian people sacrificially helping their brothers and sisters with so little resources available.”
Engel, a pediatric nurse practitioner, returned to La Romana, Dominican Republic (DR) on January 22, having taken her first primary care medical team into Port-au-Prince six days earlier. Ketly and Vital Pierre, who serve as IM missionaries in Nicaragua, were among that group. Engel is coordinating medical teams from La Romana to Haiti each week, including a team that went to Port-au-Prince on January 26. Volunteer doctors and nurse practitioners are needed for these teams. The volunteers arrive in La Romana on Sundays, travel into Haiti on Mondays, work for the week and return on Saturdays. Medical volunteers are asked to email BIMvolunteers@abc-usa.org to register. Engel reports, “There is still a critical need for medical response in this area. We are finding open fractures and wounds as well as many untreated injuries related to the earthquake. I have found most functioning hospitals unable to accept further patients due to lack of medical supplies and personnel to treat them.”
IM missionary Madeline Flores-López has remained in the DR. She and her Dominican partners are continuing to provide shelter and medical care to quake victims being brought to the Contreras Hospital in Santo Domingo.
International Ministries is closely coordinating earthquake response activities with the Haitian Baptist Convention and the Christian University of Northern Haiti. IM partners in the north of Haiti are providing medical care and relief supplies at the partially finished hospital at Quartier Morin as Haitians leave Port-au-Prince for safer locations. The United Nations estimates 235,000 people have departed from the Haitian capital using the free transportation being provided by the government. The additional number of people leaving Port-au-Prince by private means cannot be determined.
To date IM has released a total of $65,000 of One Great Hour of Sharing funds in response to the needs in Haiti. Emergency donations are desperately needed and can be made on the IM website: www.internationalministries.org/items/80. Donors can also write a check made payable to “One Great Hour of Sharing – Haiti Earthquake Relief” and mail to: International Ministries, P.O. Box 851, Valley Forge, PA 19482, or make a check payable to their American Baptist church and write “Haiti Earthquake Relief” in the memo section.
A new tax relief law allows people who contribute to Haiti earthquake relief by March 1, 2010 to take a tax deduction for the contribution on their 2009 tax return. This means donors can receive an immediate tax benefit, rather than having to wait until they file next year’s return. Donors may deduct these contributions on either their 2009 or 2010 returns, but not both. See: www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=218645,00.html?portlet=7
James’ work has been at the Haiti Health Ministries Christianville Clinic, approximately five miles from the earthquake epicenter. Although their homes and the clinic were destroyed, the Christianville medical staff worked 30 hours non-stop through the night of the earthquake, giving primary medical care to hundreds of injured people that appeared in the front yard. On January 14, James and his team of four took over care of the wounded that continued to come every day, freeing the local staff to organize, salvage and move medical supplies and equipment out of the damaged clinic and set up a makeshift clinic in a nearby undamaged school building. James reports, “We were so inspired to see so many Haitian people sacrificially helping their brothers and sisters with so little resources available.”
Engel, a pediatric nurse practitioner, returned to La Romana, Dominican Republic (DR) on January 22, having taken her first primary care medical team into Port-au-Prince six days earlier. Ketly and Vital Pierre, who serve as IM missionaries in Nicaragua, were among that group. Engel is coordinating medical teams from La Romana to Haiti each week, including a team that went to Port-au-Prince on January 26. Volunteer doctors and nurse practitioners are needed for these teams. The volunteers arrive in La Romana on Sundays, travel into Haiti on Mondays, work for the week and return on Saturdays. Medical volunteers are asked to email BIMvolunteers@abc-usa.org to register. Engel reports, “There is still a critical need for medical response in this area. We are finding open fractures and wounds as well as many untreated injuries related to the earthquake. I have found most functioning hospitals unable to accept further patients due to lack of medical supplies and personnel to treat them.”
IM missionary Madeline Flores-López has remained in the DR. She and her Dominican partners are continuing to provide shelter and medical care to quake victims being brought to the Contreras Hospital in Santo Domingo.
International Ministries is closely coordinating earthquake response activities with the Haitian Baptist Convention and the Christian University of Northern Haiti. IM partners in the north of Haiti are providing medical care and relief supplies at the partially finished hospital at Quartier Morin as Haitians leave Port-au-Prince for safer locations. The United Nations estimates 235,000 people have departed from the Haitian capital using the free transportation being provided by the government. The additional number of people leaving Port-au-Prince by private means cannot be determined.
To date IM has released a total of $65,000 of One Great Hour of Sharing funds in response to the needs in Haiti. Emergency donations are desperately needed and can be made on the IM website: www.internationalministries.org/items/80. Donors can also write a check made payable to “One Great Hour of Sharing – Haiti Earthquake Relief” and mail to: International Ministries, P.O. Box 851, Valley Forge, PA 19482, or make a check payable to their American Baptist church and write “Haiti Earthquake Relief” in the memo section.
A new tax relief law allows people who contribute to Haiti earthquake relief by March 1, 2010 to take a tax deduction for the contribution on their 2009 tax return. This means donors can receive an immediate tax benefit, rather than having to wait until they file next year’s return. Donors may deduct these contributions on either their 2009 or 2010 returns, but not both. See: www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=218645,00.html?portlet=7