In case I've yet to show a picture of the clinic, here it is. My new design for the public health center will be roughly four times larger, 15 rooms, 2 full baths and a courtyard waiting area.
This is the southern children's village, the first 20 homes that we remodeled. Now, my team is working on the northern 15 houses.
Ronique, one of our best sketch artisits and Gedna, one of the public health team memebers.
One of the neighborhood boys who stopped by one of the mobile clinics we were holding.
He smiles. I swear it.I don’t know what it was, but all day, I couldn’t stop thinking about how much I’m going to miss this place, the people, the work and of course the climate. I woke up this morning at 3am to get in my histology studying before the day began. Sundays seem to pass quickly, probably because church takes up most of the morning. After mass, I met with Fritzner and the public health group. Beginning today, Fritz is learning how to take over for me when I leave in May. I currently have 14 public health programs under my belt, am fundraising nonstop, trying to build a network among other clinics and NGOs in the area, building several databases to account for the new information we have collected on the several diseases endemic to the area, creating a census to assess the needs of the people living in the surrounding villages and at the same time, trying to delegate responsibilities so that I 1. Don’t go crazy 2. Provide work and a sense of responsibility to people who don’t otherwise have any and can benefit from it and 3. To ensure that all of this work is not only sustainable but continues to grow and reach thousands, tens of thousands and one day, the whole country.
I can’t expect any one person to take over everything that I’m doing and instead, I’m splitting the work up among Fritzner and the first four public health group graduates. It’s comforting to know that the entire program will not dependent on a single person. Here’s an example of what some of Fritzner’s responsibilities will be.
1. Education
a. Training public health team workers
i. Teaching the 3-month class
1. Create methods of evaluation
2. Record the progress and competency of each student
3. Assign homework/project assignments/proctor exams
4. Update course material as necessary
ii. Supervise public health team projects
1. Coordinate public health presentations and secure venues
2. Hold weekly public health meetings
3. Attend weekly Espwa meetings to report on any public health work being done
4. Attend the monthly department meetings to represent the public health department
2. Testing, Treatment and Prevention
a. Tuberculosis
i. Coordinate with the Espwa clinic doctor to ensure that all PPDs have been given
ii. Compile a list of positive PPD tests and distribute INH accordingly using public health team workers
iii. Ensure treatment compliance by using the DOT method
iv. Collect treatment sheets and record data in the TB registry
v. Buy and replenish any needed supplies
b. Malaria
i. Enforce malaria testing before treatment
ii. Conduct home inspections to ensure that screens and rock buffers are intact
iii. Coordinate spraying houses for bugs every three months
c. Scabies and Tinea Capitis
i. Perform mass treatment protocols whenever necessary especially at the start of the school year and at the end of the holidays
3. Hygiene, Sanitation and Safety
a. Conduct monthly home inspections
b. Conduct daily bathroom inspections
c. Conduct weekly kitchen inspections
d. Conduct monthly carpentry, tailor, mechanic and masonry inspections
e. With each inspection, a report should be written and presented to the Espwa Director with recommendations as to how to enhance the conditions if necessary
4. Networking
a. Attend monthly health care meetings at Hope for Haiti
