History
October, 2006
The nursing school (FSIL) is now starting its third year and doing extremely well. This is in spite of the horrendous problems Haiti has faced over the last few years with violence, civil unrest and continued poverty. (Two out of every three Haitians live below the poverty line; only 71% have access to an improved water source and 34% have access to adequate sanitation facilities; 33% are literate and only 2% finish secondary school.) The school now has 86 students with 25 in their third year, 25 in their second year, and 36 entering their first year. Included are 12 men, a few students in their 20’s (the median age in Haiti is 18 years) and even a few married students. All of these inclusions are new to nursing programs in Haiti. With the 4-year curriculum, this nursing school is the first baccalaureate degree nursing program in Haiti.
The dream of Dr. Jack Lafontant and other Haitians working with the Medical Benevolence Foundation (MBF) was to start a school of nursing to help improve the care at Hôpital Ste. Croix (HSC) and in the rest of Haiti. MBF was successful in obtaining a building grant from USAID/ASHA (United States Agency for International Development / American Schools and Hospitals Abroad). In 2001 Dr. Lafontant and MBF asked First Presbyterian Church of Ann Arbor, Michigan to help get the nursing program started. The Church Pastor asked recently retired Ruth Barnard, PhD, RN to take the leadership to get the nursing program started while the school buildings were under construction. Dr. Barnard recruited other volunteers. The specific curriculum plans were developed with Donna Martsolf, PhD, RN and Jessie Colin, PhD, RN. Several other volunteers helped in the preparation of the opening of the school.
We were most fortunate to find a remarkable dean, Hilda Alcindor. She was born and educated as a nurse in Haiti. She worked as a registered nurse for over 27 years in Miami and was looking for some way to return and help the people of Haiti. She accepted the challenge of implementing the plans for this nursing school. In order to do this, she took a huge cut in pay. She literally has shepherded these young people through their first years as she teaches them in the classroom, looks after their needs, and even teaches them the art of self-defense. We are most fortunate to have her as Dean.
We have been told that the nursing students already are making a major difference in the level of care being received at HSC where they are receiving their beginning clinical training. The patients are gettng baths, vital signs are being taken, medications are being dispensed and patients and their families are receiving health education to prevent more illnesses. The Dean and students have held an AIDS/HIV workshop for the community and also a Léogâne community Health Fair in cooperation with HSC.
A very active and strong governing board (Haitian and American) has been established to help run the school. Their most recent meeting was in Miami on March 6. The Governing Board plans to meet in Haiti in November. The Medical Benevolence Foundation in partnership with the Presbyterian Church USA has raised over $270,000 and the Haiti Nursing Foundation, a newly founded 501(c)(3), has already raised $80,000 for the operation of FSIL. So we have been able to contribute operational and scholarship funds to fund the operation of the school and support its students. But additional funds for construction of additional living space, additional classrooms, and a security wall are greatly needed.
In summary, the initial USAID/ASHA grant given to the MBF and HSC in Léogâne, Haïti, made it possible to start a nursing school program in a country which is the poorest in this part of the world and in so doing to set a standard of nursing education which will set the standard for all of Haiti as it will be the first to grant the BSN degree.
