Doctors without Borders had already treated 2000 patients, despite the fact that each of their existing three medical facilities in Haiti's capital had been partially damaged, and that the earthquake killed some of their staff. Makeshift surgical units are working around the clock. Experienced Doctors without Borders medical staff say they have never seen so many serious injuries. Patients are being brought in by wheelbarrow and on others' backs. http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/
Makeshift Doctors without Borders operating theater in Port-au-Prince.
Partners in Health, having been working in outlying Haiti for 25 years, brought two trucks carrying supplies and personnel into Port-au-Prince Thursday. Dr. Paul Farmer and a surgical team arrived on Friday, and two planes full of surgical teams arrived on Saturday. PIH has been designated by the World Health Organization to serve as coordinators at Port-au-Prince's public hospital. PIH is also setting up a base of operations in Port-au-Prince and developing a supply chain to the hardest-hit areas. They had more than 120 doctors and nearly 500 nurses and nurse assistants already on the ground in Haiti before the disaster, and are seeking financial donations, and recruiting additional medical personnel to help. Specifically, they are looking for orthopedic surgeons, trauma surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurse anesthetists, OR nurses, post-op nurses, and surgical technicians. Partners in Health was co-founded by Dr. Paul Farmer. Pulitzer prizewinner Tracy Kidder's book about him details the group's work (Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, a Man Who Would Cure the World). http://www.standwithhaiti.org/haiti
Oxfam staff in Haiti is providing shovels and picks for local workers to clear rubble to search for trapped victims in Port-au-Prince. Oxfam is also working to provide water by setting up water tanks in the city. The team, which has lost one staffer and some staff family members to the earthquake, is flying water, sanitation, health, and shelter equipment to Santo Domingo to be carried overland to the quake zone. The agency also has stocks of goods and equipment in Panama on stand-by. An additional 17 Oxfam humanitarian response specialists arrived in Haiti Friday. www.oxfamamerica.org
National Nurses United has already gotten 7,500 US nurses signed up to volunteer in Haiti. They need funds to assist the effort. They are working with RN Response Network, which sent nurses to help after Katrina, the Sri Lanka tsunami, and the California wildfires. http://www.calnurses.org/media-center/press-releases/2010/january/largest-rn-union-issues-urgent-call-for-nurse-volunteers-to-assist-earthquake-ravaged-haiti.html