There are severe limitations to access to healthcare in Haiti, to state the obvious. This lack of access is secondary to many reasons including, but certainly not limited to, lack of trained professionals, lack of medical resources (diagnostic equipment, medications, equipment needed to perform treatment, etc),  lack of financial resources for both patients and medical facilities and lack of infrastructure. An example of this lack of access to healthcare is treatment for myocardial infarction. In the United States, and many other developed countries, a person who is having chest pain calls 911. An ambulance will go to the patient’s location and provide stabilizing treatment if necessary and take the patient to an emergency room. The patient will immediately be evaluated and, if found to be having a myocardial infarction, will start receiving guideline directed treatment. This often will involve going to a cardiac catheterization laboratory (cath lab) where a cardiologist will do a procedure to evaluate for blockages of the arteries supplying blood to the heart. If a blockage is found, they will perform a procedure to open up the artery and place a stent in the artery. Cath labs are found in the majority of hospitals in the United States. There is not a single cath lab in Haiti. Most Haitians do not have access to any sort of emergency response system. They cannot call 911 when having chest pain. This is just one example of lack of access to health care.

Many of you have probably heard or read about the problem with gang violence in parts of Haiti and how this violence limits access to parts of the country and also limits access to certain hospitals. In addition, multiple hospitals have closed due to gang violence. One of these hospitals is a Doctors Without Borders hospital. Many Haitian physicians are leaving Haiti due to the gang violence, kidnappings, and political instability. Last month, healthcare professionals went on strike, protesting the violence and insecurity in the country and the government’s lack of response. Government facilities close periodically due to lack of funds to pay its healthcare professionals. All of this has made access to healthcare in Haiti increasingly worse.

With the above in mind, please pray for all of us at Real Hope for Haiti, that we would be able to provide excellent care for our patients, that we would be able to get the patient to the right specialist or get them to a facility that can provide the emergency care they need. Pray for us that we will always have the energy to advocate for our patients and get them the best medical care that is available to them in Haiti.

Something else- there have been a lot of Haitian immigrants trying to get to the United States. Due to insecurity in Haiti as well as COVID precautions, the US Embassy has not been processing visa applications at a normal pace. Many have grown impatient, fearful, and desperate to leave Haiti and some are attempting outside legal channels. Have compassion on them. Life is hard in Haiti, even more so now. They are simply trying to improve their situation in life.