Post-Earthquake News
Scroll down for links to stories about FSIL School of Nursing in the news
Complete news stories continued from the home page
Ì A Wedding in Léogâne
On Saturday, March 27, Dean Hilda Alcindor’s house saw a flurry of activity, as FSIL graduate Shirley Dieuveille married Dr. Matthieu. It was a joyful event, a respite from the ongoing hardships. HNF board member Margie Van Meter of Ann Arbor sent this account:
About 6 am [Hilda] began calling to the students in Creole. . . Soon there were many workers scrubbing the porch and the floor, dusting. . . a crew of women were engaged ALL day in food preparation.
The most heartwarming aspect for me. . . was the students behaving like college students getting ready for a big party. Hair was done, finger and toenails polished and lots of community and laughter in these activities.
White tablecloths were ironed. An altar was created with them and a I was assigned to decorate the cake platform.
The event was to begin at 3:30. The priest with the musicians, drummers arrived about 4:15 and the ceremony began at 4:45. Four students dressed in red dresses marched in from Hilda’s bedroom, Hilda followed as Matron of Honor. Dr. Mathieu and his father, his best man, came in from the porch.
The place was packed. Many students were there. . . The women students all had fashionable dresses including neck breaking heels. The men looked handsome in their suits. They made the most of this opportunity to have a good time.
It was an international event with Sharon [Etheridge] and I plus 3 Japanese Red Cross workers. They made a paper lei for the bride and the groom and had their picture taken with the couple.
This wedding seemed an important step in normalizing life for many. We were blessed to be here. . .
Ì FSIL Governing Board’s 7-Point Plan for Reopening the School
The Haitian Ministry of Education is allowing schools in Port-au-Prince and Léogâne areas to reopen on April 5.
All efforts to reopen FSIL (hopefully by May) are guided by the FSIL Governing Board’s 7-Point Plan:
1. Address physical and mental health needs
One of Dean Alcindor’s first requests was for grief and trauma counseling at FSIL. Mental health professionals from Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York City have volunteered to visit FSIL over the next few weeks. They’re experienced in international disasters, crisis intervention and stress management.
Part of their plan is to teach basic principles of loss and grief counseling to FSIL students, faculty and graduates so that they can in turn deliver this much-needed care to the community of Léogâne. The first of two teams will go to FSIL on April 3, with the second team there until April 23. This second team will focus on child and adolescent trauma care in their training. The nonprofit Disaster Psychiatry Outreach is helping to fund this important and necessary counseling and educational intervention.
Michele Sare of Nurses for Nurses International has been working hard to obtain complete immunizations for all students, faculty and staff. (You might recall Michele was the nurse visiting FSIL when the first quake hit, who stayed and helped in those first frantic days.
2. Restore the physical plant
Much information gathering has been required to arrange for repairs and rebuilding. Part of the work involves figuring out which funding bodies are able to help with the many projects (rebuilding the wall, replacing furniture, etc.). Reopening the physical plant so that classes can resume fortunately doesn’t involve any major construction on the buildings.
3. Provide adequate supplies and equipment for clinical and education needs
Textbooks and other supplies are being ordered. See the list above of items made possible by our donors.
4. Ensure safety of the campus
It is taking a great effort to clean the areas that have had tremendous traffic of injured people and others living on the grounds. Many volunteers have already helped, but some professional services will be needed. Léogâne’s police chief has taken up residence on the campus, and his presence affords a great sense of security.
5. Examine and update the curriculum
The board is reviewing the curriculum for content in Grief and Loss Counseling, Rehabilitation, PTSD – knowledge that will be much more critical for FSIL graduates in the coming years. HNF has arranged for a complete translation of the Nursing Division of Haiti Nursing Curriculum from French into English. This will be essential for the many new visiting faculty members.
6. Recruit, screen, and schedule volunteer faculty
The board’s goal is to have a highly qualified faculty in place when FSIL is ready to reopen. This will include distance learning as well as short- and long-term visiting faculty. A number of U.S. nurse educators and schools of nursing have offered distance learning and graduate instruction opportunities for FSIL students in the coming months.
Two U of M faculty emeritus are volunteering their time to organize and pre-screen dozens of potential volunteer faculty members who’ve come forth. Michele Sare is helping to arrange for the volunteer faculty where they’re most qualified and as their schedules permit.
7. Rebuild business and financial systems supporting FSIL
FSIL’s former bookkeeper has not returned, and efforts are being made to find a person who can manage the accounting system.
Ì Your Donations Are Making a Difference…
Generous gifts from donors have made these repairs, replacements, and improvements possible:
Food, fuel, and medical supplies for those at FSIL in the weeks following the earthquake
Shoes, fanny packs, and clothing for students and staff working at FSIL
Replacement of water heater
New textbooks and medical equipment
Expenses for visiting mental health professionals volunteering their time and skills (see above)
Satellite system for reliable internet service that will allow for more distance learning
Twenty new laptops, routers, and other devices for networking and internet connection
Two air conditioners to keep the computer room cool and operational
A new 15-passenger van
A 30-passenger heavy-duty bus
The bus was made possible largely through a grant from the Dana Beck Fancher Missions Committee at First Presbyterian Church in Dunedin, Florida. Gifts from the Masco Corporation Foundation and Masco employees facilitated the satellite and computer purchases, and the balance needed for the bus. Donations to the Medical Benevolence Foundation made the van purchase a reality.
We extend special thanks to the Dahlmann Campus Inn of Ann Arbor, their Chef Dan Tesin, organizer Annie Harris, and numerous Ann Arbor businesses and individuals who made “Dining for Haiti” such a successful event.
The Ann Arbor Area Community Tennis Association’s “Hit for Haiti” was another great event. Thanks also to Ann Arbor’s Guy Hollerin’s in the Holiday Inn, and the three bands that played at “Rock for Haiti”: Laith Al-Saadi, The Bluescasters, and Hullabaloo. And for the third year in a row, the University of Michigan Student Nurses Association ball “Hope for Haiti” gave us a beautiful event, raising over $6000!
For their substantial aid, many thanks to Second Presbyterian Church of Indianapolis, USA Funds, First Presbyterian Church of Ann Arbor, Achieve Charter Academy in Canton, Michigan, and St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Dowagiac.
Many generous individuals, churches, schools, businesses, and other organizations have made it possible for Haiti Nursing Foundation to respond with financial support for the FSIL School of Nursing. Dozens of nurses, nurse educators, and student organizations have offered help in many forms. Our marvelous board members have been organizing events, speaking to groups, collecting funds, and working in countless other ways.
WE CANNOT THANK YOU ALL ENOUGH!
Ì Update from FSIL School of Nursing
The FSIL School of Nursing has been a hub of activity, especially with the addition of the new field hospital next to Dean Alcindor’s residence. There is still a widespread fear of returning to life inside buildings – even those deemed safe. There have been too many aftershocks; too many bodies still being recovered as rubble is cleared. It isn’t difficult to imagine how the rains complicate recovery efforts, affecting tens of thousands of people living in makeshift shelters, without sufficient clothing, blankets, or food.
Yet everyone forges ahead. Tents from international aid organizations are replacing many of the shelters on FSIL grounds, allowing Léogâne residents to move to other locations. About 50 students are back at FSIL, living in tents, some with their families on site as well. Plans are being made for a memorial service for the three students who died in the first earthquake, to occur soon after classes resume.
Dean Hilda Alcindor has not left Haiti since the earthquake. She will have a short visit with her family in the U.S. over Easter weekend, however, before returning to FSIL to oversee efforts to reopen the school.
A succession of board members and other volunteers are traveling to Léogâne to aid FSIL. They’ve assessed damages, cleared rubble, dug latrines, and helped Dean Alcindor determine what’s necessary for FSIL to reopen
School architect Jimmy Hite, AIA (Hite Associates, Greenville, North Carolina) was first on site, evaluating the structures. He was followed by Dick Stuber and others representing the Medical Benevolence Foundation, International Health Ministries, and other affiliates of the Presbyterian Church (USA). Abundant thanks for their numerous efforts!)
Board member Jessie M. Colin, PhD, RN (Barry University, Miami) went down at the end of February. Monique Germain, MS, RN (Chicago State University) followed Dr. Colin. Until March 31st, support has been given by Margie Van Meter, MS, RN (retired, University of Michigan Health System). Their reports are excerpted frequently here.
Margie was joined by another nurse, Sharon Etheridge, a nurse educator from Grand Rapids, MI. Faithful supporter Tim Bristol, PhD, RN, of Minnesota, just returned from 10 days in Léogâne. He and his group of over twenty volunteers helped to clean up FSIL. They also networked twenty new laptops, after the satellite system was installed. There are many others we can’t begin to name who’ve worked tirelessly to support FSIL.
The Japanese team is still at FSIL and will be there until May. Then they’re thinking of a long term plan. We’re still hoping they leave behind their portable x-ray machine and ice cream maker!
Ì Other News
On Friday, March 5th the Episcopal Bishop of Haiti blessed the new field hospital of HSC (Hôpital Ste. Croix), located next to Dean Alcindor’s residence. It has inpatient beds, a maternity and children’s ward, and a surgery unit. A representative was there on behalf of Worldwide Villages, the organization that obtained the donation for this temporary hospital. They’re also coordinating the medical personnel serving there. (If you’re a doctor or nurse interested in a two-week stint, contact Chris Buresh, christopher-buresh@uiowa.edu for more information.) Nurses on the WWV team are working with FSIL students, who are getting great experience in the “MASH” unit.
For news about the ‘old’ HSC hospital, check out John and Suzi Parker’s new blog: www.hopitalstecroix.blogspot.com. It includes personal news, some post-earthquake pictures, and current plans for the hospital.
Excerpts from Dr. Jessie Colin’s report after her visit to FSIL :
. . . The classrooms and the lab are all fine and so are the offices. . . All of the equipment and supplies in the rooms were dismantled and thrown about as a result of the quake. Cleaning and reorganizing may bring a sense of order and moving forward!
The Library
The books will need updating. [Dr. Colin compiled a list of needed books.] Many of the books are out of date. So we need to work on this for the long range.
The Computer Room
Every computer needs to be replaced. A satellite system has been installed by a company that is in Haiti and includes the ability to get immediate on-site consult and repair as needed. . . In addition, an international phone will also be installed at the school, with connection at the dean’s house. . .
Opening of the school
Students currently at the school all live in the yard of the Dean’s house. There are 8 – 1st year; 14 – 2nd year; 13 – 3rd year and 17 4th year. The impact is that Hilda has to provide for them and ensure their security. They are assigned to the hospital daily for clinical experience in the various services and some go out for a mobile clinic project. One of the clinical instructors is onsite with them in the clinic area.
Financial—No Banks in Léogâne are operational
Ann Arbor board member Marge Van Meter writes from FSIL on 3/26:
“A group of 5 young men who are college students from P-a-P have formed a committee in the tent village. They are having Kids Club for the very young children each evening under a tarp. The children bring their
own chairs and the space is packed. Under this one tarp about 15 x 15 are at least 3 groups being taught by the leaders at the same time.
Some things that impact my nursing compassion are seeing patients with lower extremity injuries standing on crutches with the extremity dependent, in the long clinic lines. Also mothers who are there for hours without evidence of a water source nursing their small babies.”
“There will be more joyful reunions, more tears spilled over the latest bits of news of deaths just being told me, more frustration with the slow pace of traffic and recovery, more wonderment at the joy one finds in Haitians, all of whom tell me they have been saved by God for a reason: To rebuild Haiti, to care for those in need.”
The Rev. Lauren R. Stanley, on her return to Haiti this week (3/29)
Episcopal Church Appointed Missionary in Haiti http://GoIntoTheWorld.net
News links to stories about Leogane and the FSIL school of Nursing:
Hope in the Ruins
Nurse Michele Sare is featured in the nursing magazine Recruitment Canada, discussing the situation in Leogane after the earthquake full story
Operation Haiti: Madison doctor is teaching Haitian nurse skills to take back home more
Eastern Carolina Nursing College raises funds, awareness for Haiti nursing school
Haitian Diaspora Sees an Opening to help rebuild Haiti http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704041504575045522920595294.html?mod=WSJEUROPE_hpp_sections_world
Haiti Update: Dean Says Help Is on the Ground at Nursing School http://community.advanceweb.com/blogs/nurses3/archive/2010/01/18/haiti-update-dean-says-help-is-on-the-ground-at-nursing-school.aspx
Haitian bishop, living in tent city, says ‘the people are strong http://www.episcopalchurch.org/79901_118530_ENG_HTM.htm
SDF medics to help in Haiti http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20100119b1.html
Hope in the ruins: Nursing in Haiti
Nurse Michele Sare’s experience in Haiti right after the earthquake is featured in the nursing magazine Recruitment Canada more
Operation Haiti: Madison doctor is teaching Haitian nurse skills to take back
In Haiti, after the quake, Rigan Louis was the stoic young nurse who could get the Léogâne field hospital’s balky generator going again, who could find a visiting surgeon a saw and rasp in the rubble, and who had the courage and skill to amputate a little girl’s infected hand. more
