Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Our
mission took place in a remote village 100 miles SW of the capital city
of Port-au-Prince. Due to the awful road conditions, it took 13 hours by
bus to travel the 100 miles. However, our journey was nothing compared
to so many of our patients, many of whom had never seen a doctor before
in their lives, walked or rode a donkey for 2 days for the opportunity
to be examined and to have surgery.
As we did not have electricity, our crew of 8 people operated as
soon as it was light enough, until it was too dark to see. We performed
over 75 surgeries, and saw over 100 patients in the primary care
clinic. We saw new traumatic injuries from accidents, chronic old
injuries that had never been properly repaired, and acute injury that
required immediate repairs. Thanks to your kindness and generosity, we
received so many compliments on our caps! We were able to change the
lives of all whom we encountered, including our own. On behalf of the
entire crew, thank you for everything.
Amanda Young, MS, RN, CRNP
