Slippery Sally

SlipperySally slide sheets make a difference to Haiti Earthquake victims

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The Haiti Earthquake in January 2010 caused widespread devastation and overloaded their hospitals. Volunteers such as Fi Stephenson are doing a fantastic job to assist with the many injured in the Haiti Spinal & Rehabilitation Unit in the L'Hopital Convention Baptiste D'Haiti. Here is an excert from her amazing experiences which gives an appreciation of the challenges Fi faces on a daily basis.

 “Whilst they had been away, our new unit was finished and the patients were moved by stretcher to their new hospital beds with proper hospital mattresses, bedside lockers, air conditioning, freshly painted walls and a new floor! I had taken photos of the new ward and had shown the families and patients their new 'home', and gave them the opportunity to choose their beds. Eve wanted to be close to the door and I asked her to choose the beds for her friends. There was so much excitement amongst the families and staff during the move! Big smiles and laughter! Everyone felt truly energized. The visiting teams of doctors just could not believe it! They were so complimentary about the unit and many said it was like walking in to a western ward again and in complete contrast to the haitian medical environment. All I can say is that a lot of work was involved by an amazing team of people, both haitian and english (here and in the UK), and it really is lovely to see all our efforts put into practice! It genuinely is a good feeling to know that we are making a difference here. Of course there are teething problems to anything new and we have certainly had them. There will be more in the future, but at the end of the day, everyone is trying to do their best - given the circumstances.

We have been admitting new patients as the doctors at Milo were keen to discharge theirs because of the worryingly and rapidly increasing wound infection rate there; it is now over 50%. The surgeons there are having to amputate more and more limbs because the external fixations to arms and legs have become grossly infected and gangrenous. What a horrible process for everyone and another issue that the Haitian people will need to accept and address.  I have never been in a war zone, but I guess this must be pretty close. With the rainy season on its way, increasingly humid high temperatures, no air conditioning, beds crammed together, minimal if any running water (especially in the field hospital tents) and flies, the infection rate is bound to be high. So our brand spanking new unit with all its amenities and un-cramped conditions was like a gift from God!

To help Fi, Haines Medical Australia donated 100 SlipperySally slide sheets which at least will make some of the manual handling tasks a little easier.

Keep up the great work Fi!
 
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