Mike showing Tom and Kiko around. Tom and Kiko came to help for the day.

Above: This lady was severely dehydrated and unconscious when she arrived. We picked her up in the ambulance in a small village of Fond Dieu. They brought her from across the lake. Two of our best nurses at starting IVs worked hard to find a vein. Claudine was working on the patients right arm, while Celimene worked on her left. Her veins were collapsed, her pulse was weak, and her body was getting cold. Finally they got a small 24 gauge butterfly in a small vein. With cholera we usually put in 18 gauge angiocaths, so that we can rehydrate them rapidly. This small 24 gauge ran very slow. We wrapped a blood pressure cuff around the IV bag to pressurize it. Thankfully this small IV was enough to help her other veins fill back up. Later, the nurses were able to get a bigger IV started. We are so thankful for our dedicated nurses who worked so hard to save this girl's life.

Mike working in the nurses station.

Spencer giving a hygiene lesson and a lesson on preparing ORS.

Matt gets some energy after working 15 hours.


We have 2 tents like this set up to receive the less severe cases.

Beds lining the halls. The hospital is full.

Abigail giving one of Ti-Rose's children Pedialyte.

Tonight we have 25 patients in the Cholera Hospital. It is so rewarding being able to save so many lives. There has been 125 patients that have come through the Cholera hospital since we opened Monday, Nov. 15. At least 75% of these clearly had cholera symptoms. It is safe to say that at lease half of these would have died without our hospital. Many are very poor, and simply would not have been able to make it to any cholera treatment center. Cholera kills by dehydration so very fast!! I have never seen such excessive diarrhea and vomiting. Patients can vomit and diarrhea gallons in only a few hours.

Cholera Update

Good evening,

Since we have started on Monday we have seen a steady increase in patients. The last day or two we have had a steady 17 or so patients. Some are discharged and some new ones come in. We can only expect that we will have a steady increase in patient load.

I am suggesting to Merv that we start bringing in some volunteers (you all). This would not look as much like a medical team that comes in and does it all, but more like a doctor and 2 nurses at a time that would work with our Haitian staff. This would be an excellent opportunity for you to help increase the healthcare capacity in Haiti, by working with and teaching our Haitian staff.

Pleas contact the home office ifm-hdr@juno.com or 517-287-4007 if you are interested.

Here is the cholera center. There is a fence across to separate it from the day clinic. By the tent to the right, there is a small walk through gate for patients to enter. Joseph, Nerlange, and Gene man this post. Upon first arriving, patients are put in the white hospital tent for triage and observation. When we are sure that they are sick with cholera, we move them inside, but if they are do not show cholera symptoms, they are sent home. It can take as little as 5 seconds to several hours to determine this.

Julia, our hospital supervisor is training in Hannah. Hannah is working today.


This room is for the almost recovered patients. All of these electric beds actually work!


These two nurses came for interviews this morning. Since another nurse didn't show, we asked them to go ahead and stay. Neither are very experienced. Dr. Alexis is watching to see how good she is at starting an IV.


Ray is making beds with holes in. This is so we can put a bucket underneath the hole to catch the diarrhea.



If you know any RN's, or LPN's that could come and help it would be great. Contact the Home Office at 517-287-4007 or ifm-hdr@juno.com for scheduling.

The tent to triage and observe patients before they are admitted.


Prosper, our janitor. It takes lots of clorox to keep this place clean.


This child is doing well.


Starting an IV for a patient that come in this morning.


Closely observing this patient. He is severely dehydrated.

( a journal excerpt)

Nov. 16th, 2010

Today started at 12:00am Prosper had called me at 11:06 with someone sent down from Thomas asking for the ambulance. And by the time the new day started I was on my way to Port. with a woman having trouble in labor. The Police stopped me on the way in. And even though I was in the Ambulance with all the lights going and a pregnant woman screaming bloody murder they still asked to see in the back.

Dropped her off and got back in bed by 2am. Zoe called me at 3am to go pick up more people with Cholera from across the lake and take them to the clinic, slept from 5-9am.

Didn't get too much done in the afternoon. Put the starter back in the clinic delco and went to look at a house to rent for the Tisimon's.

Worked the night at the clinic with Claudine Pastors oldest daughter who's a nurse. spent the night emptying vomit buckets and moping the floor with bleach. Case number 5 came in about 11pm, a very old man from Bwa Bla. They said he had started vomiting at 5pm and by the time he got here he was pretty well waisted, eyes sunken and fingers shriveled up. He held on till 4:17 when he let life go.

Beginnings of...Cholera

Our hospital is now being used for a cholera observation center. Setting up the big tent for the initial observation before moving the cholera patients into the hospital.

The guards at the yard entrance screening for cholera patients. Appears to be a cheery bunch!:)

Here the guys are cutting sheets of wood to lay on the beds for the cholera patients.

Mr. Chlorox on the run...:) This is one of the janitors who does a great job at keeping everything sanitized. The floors get mopped and bathrooms get cleaned with chlorox many times a day!

Willing nurses ready to help with our cholera patients. It can be difficult to find help, seeing as most Haitians are very scared of the disease.

This lady was our first obviously cholera stricken patient at the new hospital. The nurses had a challenge trying to put in a IV into this sick patient.

This mountain lady is the mother of a man that died on Monday morning from cholera. This man became ill after coming across the lake with some others infected with cholera. In 12 hours he had died, and passed the disease onto family who was caring for him.

Please continue to pray for the sick and for those working with the disease!

S.O.S.

Dear Supporters,

Please pray for us as we open a cholera treatment center. We had 2 cholera cases today that we took in to Port-au-Prince. The Port-au-Prince cholera treatment centers are overflowing. We have no choice but to treat them here at our hospital. I do not have enough medical staff to do this. We will probably be overrun with cholera patients in a couple of days.

The clinic across the road is refusing to treat anyone that is suspected of having cholera. Haitians are scared of it, and it is hard to find people that will work with this disease.

If you know a medical person that could volunteer for a week or two, please let me know and call the home office at 517-287-4007. Please pray that we will have enough funds with the added expenses.

Thanks,

Very little damage in Fond Parisien

Thankfully, there was very little damage here in Fond Parisien. We got 2.5 inches of rain and had 20 -30 MPH winds. There was some flooding from the rivers coming from the mountains, and there were some trees blown down. Other than that, everything is back to normal.
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Praise God for the young men that sealed their commitment to follow Christ, with baptism this afternoon. One of these was Wandy, a boy that we have helped. Please pray for Wandy. He does not have an easy life.








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Hurricane Tomas

Please pray for the many people living in tents during this hurricane.

Here in Fond Parisien, we have about 20 MPH winds with light rain. Obviously, we are on the edge of the storm. Western Haiti is being pounded much harder.

Matt Newcomer and the Ambulance volunteered to help the University of Miami Hospital and the Medical Marines. Matt is driving the Medical Marines around to area hospitals, to help them support them during this hurricane.

Welcome to the family!!!

Please rejoice with us here in the DR as we celebrate the decision of Sulema, a young lady from the community, who gave her heart to Christ last night in church. Praise the Lord!!! She is the first in her family to become a Christian but we pray she won't be the last.