Recently, it was reported that Haitian gangs breached the prisons in the capital, which mirrors the shocking news that the Catholic hospital associated with Msgr. Theodule Domond (Deacon Joe’s brother) has been ransacked and forced to close. A Catholic bishop was badly burned when his home was set on fire in retaliation for speaking out against the violence. The international airport has been rocked by gunfire, many helping agencies have evacuated, and there has been no import of goods into the country. The cholera epidemic continues. However, the Catholic Church is still there, and the Domond Foundation continues to do everything possible to serve people in need in the capital and rural areas.
Our dialysis center is the only such facility in the capital of Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Our patients depend on our services and risk their lives to come to us. Malnutrition and missed sessions often make them sicker. Your donations go a long way. The courageous doctors and nurses who operate six machines three times a day earn $180 per month.
The clinic can accommodate patients with three sessions per day on six machines. Because the situation in the capital is so dangerous, we have stockpiled four months’ worth of supplies and pray for some relief. Also, the clinic has its own source of electrical power.
Our hospital in Marbial is thriving. It provides the only local urgent care available to people who rarely see a doctor. We hope to open our operating room, which is almost ready, but we have no funds yet to hire staff and purchase some equipment. (Doctors earn $296 per month, nurses $180). Our plans to open the dental clinic were thwarted when donated equipment shipped to Haiti was stalled in the city. It is nearly impossible to safely transport valuable equipment to rural areas for fear of gangs hijacking it. We continue to be careful and do what we can because the need is great.