Yolette has been a nurse and a seamstress for many years. She has worked in numerous clinics and hospitals. During the first couple years of the cholera outbreak, she worked with Samaritan’s Purse at one of their cholera centers. She has cared for hundreds of cholera patients and counts it a blessing to have helped so many during this crisis in Haiti. While at RHFH, she has worked in the cholera center, the wound care/emergency room at the clinic, and monitoring the sickest children in the ICU.

She was born in Conoye, a mountain village about a 2 hour walk the clinic. She is has 2 brother and 4 sisters. Two have moved to other countries. Her mother died during childbirth when Yolette was 8 yrs old. Her father remarried and is still living. Yolette is 49 years old and has three children. The oldest son is 24 yrs old and a lawyer in another country. Her middle daughter is 19 yrs old and she would like to be a doctor. Her youngest son is 14 yrs old and he would like to be an engineer. She has raised her children to respect others and have good goals in life.

Yolette, her husband, and two of their children live in a four room house in Cabaret (30 minute motorcycle ride from clinic) that they own made of cement block and covered with a tin roof. It has a bathroom, shower, and kitchen. They usually buy their water for $1.37 per barrel. Her husband works at a school.

She likes nursing and caring for patients. She especially likes caring for children. The top thing that she doesn’t like about the work is the death of a patient. The hardest thing about work is to get people to change their hygiene behaviors. She can teach about hand washing every day, but it has to be the choice of the patients to change their behaviors and actions.

One patient that she will always remember is a young woman that had severe diarrhea and dehydration. She suspected cholera immediately. They carried her just inside the gate and she died. Yolette tried so hard to help her, but she was gone. She just didn’t get to the center in time. Yolette had to talk to the family and tell them. Everyone was devastated because this young lady was loved by many. It was such a heartbreaking scene and Yolette will never forget the pain that cholera has caused so many in Haiti.

During a normal day at the cholera center, Yolette comes at 6:00 and starts the shift with prayer. She does vital signs and talks to the patients to see how they are doing and if they have any concerns. She administers medications and encourages them to drink ORS or gives them IV fluids. She searches for good teaching moments to give hygiene education. She talks to visitors that come to see the patients also. There is lots of paperwork to complete throughout the day – charting, registers, and reports. With lots of bacteria, cleaning is high priority. Towards the end of the day, she discharges patients that are well and gives them further education before they go home.

Her job helps her because her pay allows her to help her family with food, supplies, and other activities. She is also able to help others that are in need. She is happy that RHFH is able to give so many people work and all the lives that have been saved because of the CTC.

She likes to go to the beach and swim. Her church has a couple of groups that she is involved in and draws strength from. She also sews school uniforms and other clothes.

She attends a Church of God in her area and asks that you pray for her family – for her children to advance in life, her health, and her relationships.