Days 2-4

Greetings from Port-au-Prince. The last several days have been exciting, with the instability and lack of infrastructure that you would expect. There are so many non-profit's and NGO's on the ground here that at times it can seem overwhelming. However, one trip to the center of town brings you back to the reality that much, much more assistance will be needed for years to come.

Some highlights:

- Meeting Sean Penn at the UN compound. He politefully (or not so much) declined my request for a photo.

- Visiting St. Claire's Church. This church has pulled itself from the rubble to become a true source of inspiration. They serve over 1,500 meals daily to children and 2,000 meals to adults. According to their priest, that meal accounts for the entire daily intake for 90% of the people that they assist.

- Meeting some Chilean troops that are serving with the UN. It was interesting to get their take on the difference between the aftermath of both earthquakes. The damage in some Chilean coastal towns, according to one Major, is comparable or worse than parts of Port-au-Prince.

- Hitting the local grocery store. Probably the most surprising part of my trip so far was seeing the amount of Manischewitz available. There were literally more bottles of kosher wine available than customers in the store.

- Katie Couric will be broadcasting CBS Nightly News from our camp next week; she won't be able to escape my camera lens.

The hospital continues to receive patients with earthquake-related injuries. Considering we are nearing 3 months since the earthquake, it's astounding. When I arrived we also had a large population of orphans living amongst us. However, we have transferred most to orphanages in the Port-au-Prince area. Several are in the process of being adopted by hospital volunteers. Given the current chaos, the adoption process is longer than expected and extremely unreliable.

I'll check back in a few days.

Best,

Rob

Day 1

We arrived in Port-au-Prince at roughly 930AM on Saturday morning. On the final approach into the airport, we got a glimpse of the carnage. Even from the air, it's not difficult to realize the level of destruction that has taken place.

Along with 50 other volunteers (the others are primarily doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals) we made our way through customs, immigration, and finally to the Univ of Miami hospital. It's located on the airport grounds, adjacent to U.S. military and U.N peacekeepers compounds. There are currently 600 people total at the hospital; 100 patients, 150 family members, 150 Haitian employees, and 200 volunteers. The facilities are basic, but are equipped with modern medical resources.

I was also able to take a drive around Port-au-Prince in search of supplies. The city is functioning in a chaotic, disjointed way. Many streets are still filled with rubble and houses everywhere are sitting in the same state since the earthquake struck. U.S. military and U.N. peacekeepers (primarily Brazilian, Jordanian, and Japanese) are prominent forces during the day.

All in all, things here at the hospital are well. Once I get settled in, I'll update everyone.

Haiti

I'm heading to Haiti on Saturday March 27th, and plan on being there for 1 month. I will be working with the University of Miami & Project Medishare Hospital. I'll post pictures and blogs as often as possible!