I have heard some guardedly good news from the Artibonite/Central Plateau where so many of our partnerships are located.

Dr. Harold Morse, a physician with a 40+ year involvement with Partners in Health and the hospitals at Cange and Mirebalais reports the following:

Mirebalais:  The splendid hospital built by Partners in Health  (HUM — the Hôpital Universitaire de Mirebalais, one of the best hospitals in the Caribbean when it opened, location of the first-ever successful separation of conjoined twins by an all-Haitian surgical team)  is reasonably secured and not severely vandalized on the inside.  Whenever the gangs depart, it should (please pray!) be able to function again relatively quickly.  A number of the medical staff from Mirebalais are working in Cange.

HUM not long before opening, 2012

Cange:  There is a plan in the formation stage to design and build a new and improved hospital at Cange.  Located some 30 km from Mirebalais, it’s clearly needed for the people of that immediate area.  When the new hospital opened, most of the attention shifted to Mirebalais as they could offer state-of-the-art surgical theaters, imaging, etc.  Cange continued to operate an emergency room, some surgery and maternity services, the AIDS/TB residence, and other medical care, but Clemson architects are currently designing a much improved space with updated equipment which would be a Godsend to a large local population.

The school, part of the socio-medical complex at Cange, 2008

Sign at the AIDS and TB clinic/residence, Cange,

When both hospitals were open, both had long lines of patients waiting to be seen.  Now with Mirebalais closed, Cange is stressed to the maximum and many patients have to go as far as Hinche, 40 km north, for medical care.  It will be a great day when Mirebalais can reopen and Cange can begin the long-awaited upgrades to its facilities.

We’ll be thrilled to hear the updates about either one!