Halifax doctors raising money to fund help-visit to Haiti

HALIFAX – Medical staff from across Canada have been visiting Haiti to help the country as it recovers from a devastating 2010 earthquake, and a group from Halifax will be heading back this spring.

It was Jan. 12, 2010 when an earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale killed about 200,000 people in Haiti’s capital city and surrounding area. It also damaged or destroyed many of the buildings.

Despite the efforts of many countries to help, much work remains as Haiti was among the Western Hemisphere’s poorest countries before the earthquake.

“They’ve recovered mainly from the earthquake devastation,” said Dr. Chad Coles, a Halifax-based orthopedic surgeon. “Now they’re back to a baseline level of hardship — very limited medical resources, limited access to care.”

Coles and a team of 20 nurses and doctors went to Haiti for a week in November 2013 to provide medical care. The cost is about $2,000 for each person to go and the Halifax group plans to go again in April.

GALLERY:

(all photos provided by Marc Butler, courtesy Broken Earth)

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After paying for the last trip themselves, they’re holding a fundraiser this time — a pub night at The Old Triangle bar in downtown Halifax on Feb. 7.

The group — one of several across Canada that call themselves “Broken Earth” — will also accept donations from individuals or corporations.

“This is going to take a sustained effort to train the medical trainees on the ground there,” Coles said. “To educate the young doctors and nurses so that they can become a self-sustained team to provide care moving forward.”

The group from Halifax would like to provide help to Haiti twice a year.

“This is the first opportunity I’ve had to do any sort of a global outreach” Coles said. “It really makes you appreciate what you have here.

“This is an opportunity for us in a small way to give back to the global health need.”