Monday, February 8, 2010

PHILIPPINE HUMANITARIAN TEAM BUCKLES DOWN

From: DOH WebPage

Press Release/3 February 2010

The 21-man Philippine Humanitarian Team sent by the Department of Health (DOH) hit the ground running upon their arrival in quake-devastated Haiti, as they immediately rendered badly-needed medical services at two locations in the capital Port-au-Prince, Health Secretary Esperanza Cabral reported today.

Cabral disclosed that after consultation with the Health Cluster coordinator, Dr. Dana Van Alphen, the team chose to serve at the Hospitalier Eliazar Germain, a 45-bed facility one-and-a-half hours away from the United Nations base where the team had set up camp. The Philippine humanitarian team replaced the Miami Medical Mission, which had been managing the hospital until they pulled out last January 30. There the team performed debridement and other surgical procedures for wounded patients.

Part of the team also rendered medical services at the Stade Sylvio Cator, a nearby football stadium turned into an evacuation camp. The group provided rapid health assessment and performed surgeries and wound dressing. The psychosocial team, on the other hand, was prepared to provide stress debriefing to UN peacekeeping personnel, including Filipinos, with UN base psychiatrist Dr. Yousupha Niang. They also visited four areas where Filipinos affected by the earthquake had temporarily settled in tents to provide mental and psychosocial support.

“Our team has performed admirably and was able to provide excellent service to the victims of the earthquake, Filipinos and Haitians alike,” Cabral concluded.

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