The Lamp is, first and foremost, a health organization.  Our health center in Bwa Nèf, Cité Soleil is the heart of our program.  But we are also a part of a community, a community in which there is a burning hope to do better in all aspects of life.  One obvious evidence of this hope is the number of schools throughout  the area.  There are five within a short walk of our clinic.  You would be hard pressed to find a community with a keener appreciation of education than this one.  Education — it is known — is the way to move from mere survival to some small taste of the good life: meaningful work, food on the table, and rest from the endless crises of poverty.

The Lamp sponsors 21 children in these local schools.  The pictures show Misterlande and Steevenson receiving their school supplies at the beginning of the year.  It is a small program, but it has many benefits.  It creates a strong relationship with the leadership of the schools.  The owners, principals and teachers are among the most community-minded leaders in the zone, and their support of our other programs is a great benefit for us.  The regular income they gain from the sponsored children has a outsize effect on the facilities of their entire schools.  The relationship allows us, too, to easily integrate health education sessions into school curriculums.  And, of course, we are able to provide a few beautiful children with a basic education.

Recently the kids were asked to provide some information about themselves.  Their favorite color, the name of their teacher, and so on.  The answers were very touching.  When asked about their favorite food fully half said “rice with bean sauce” which is what they eat each day (if they are lucky).  Only a few were bold enough (or experienced enough) to say “meat”.   When asked what they wanted to be when they grew up, half of them chose “doctor” or “nurse”.  That is the good effect of having a fine Haitian-run health center in their neighborhood (the Lamp!), and here’s hoping they achieve their dreams!

Fifth Annual Concert for Haiti

On Saturday, January 25th the Montclair community once again came together for an evening of music, community-building, and support for Haiti at the Fifth Annual Concert for Haiti.

The concert featured the marvelous Emeline Michel as headliner (the “Joni Mitchell of Haiti”) along with Montclair High School’s Passing Notes, Big Mamou (Zydeco),  Zing Experience (Haitian roots, rock and reggae), the Jazz House Kids, the Oxygen Box Band, and a group featuring Cantor Meredith Greenberg, Leora Perlman and Bob Mellman from Temple Ner Tamid.   A musical feast, and a sell-out!  Thanks to everyone who participated!

Proceeds from the concert went to the Lamp, the Edeyo Foundation which operates a school in the Bel-Air section of Port-au-Prince, and Haitian Education and Leadership Program (HELP) which provides university scholarships to deserving Haitian youth.

Click here for photos and conversation with Emeline Michel and Jim Morgan:   Montclair Times article and photos

Construction of two new exam rooms next to the clinic in Cite Soleil continues!

As a part of our commitment to the community we are always looking to provide as many jobs as possible to local residents.  We are proud to note, therefore, that our current construction is being completed entirely with local labor, both skilled and unskilled.  We were very happy to find three “boss” masons from the community with substantial experience in this type of construction.  “Bòs” Lamarre, pictured on the home page, is directing all activities.

In addition to the jobs provided, the construction offered an opportunity to provide a measure of vocational training to local laborers.  Construction was therefore preceded by a day-long workshop, led by a well-experienced contractor from Port-au-Prince, Jean Filsaime, who shared many basic concepts and skills.  Mr. Filsaime was the contractor for our previous construction project, a public toilet.  In addition to imparting basic construction knowledge he also had much to share regarding construction in an area where the water table is six inches below the surface.

The building is rising rapidly. The result will be, I believe, something that the community will always view with a sense of — justified — pride.

A central principle of the Lamp, from our earliest days, has been to integrate our services into the life of the community we serve.  A second principle, even more fundamental, has been to target our efforts to the most impoverished and neglected populations of which we are aware.  The direct result of these principles was our decision to locate our health center in the middle of the desperately poor neighborhood known as Bwa Nef, within the wider slum of Cité Soleil.

That this location has provided challenges is certainly true, but we remain committed to the wisdom of our chosen path.  Now, to reinforce that commitment we are expanding our “campus” in Bwa Nef with the construction of a new two-room building.

It will be our first ever purpose-built structure for medical use.  Ever since the Lamp clinic opened in 2006, we have made do with converted residential buildings.  But our plans to install a much needed x-ray facility call for a building with unique specifications.

Not to mention, of course, that our current space is extremely cramped!

Each of the two rooms will function as an exam room for our physicians, but each also has a distinct purpose: one will be the new home of our women’s health clinic and the second will double as our x-ray room.  Our ability to provide top quality medical service will greatly increase once these additions are made!

The Lamp’s clinic in the neighborhood of Bwa Nèf is open to all, but we are well aware that people in Cité Soleil are hesitant to enter a neighborhood other than their own.   We are very happy to announce, then, a very successful collaboration with an agency called Sakala.  Sakala runs a youth empowerment and community gardening program in a nearby area of Cité Soleil called Twa Bebe (Three Babies).  (See the recent article on director Daniel Tillias on this site.)   In collaboration with Sakala, and with the help of volunteer medical personnel, we held our first mobile clinic there on May 30.  It was a terrific success.  Two hundred and twenty six people were examined by our doctors, including 147 women, 79 men and 100 children.  A great range of illnesses were diagnosed and treated, including 28 people with malaria, 59 with urinary infections, 80 with gastrointestinal diseases or parasites, 24 with scabies or ringworm, 15 with asthma, pneumonia or bronchitis, 39 with anemia.   A large proportion of the free medication that was dispensed was provided by AmeriCares Haiti — a big thanks to them!  The event included a very strong emphasis on health education and prevention, with both doctors and nurses providing slide shows and interactive sessions on many topics.  In the photo above the poster focuses on typhoid.  It reads: “What is this illness?  (It’s an infection) How is it caused?  What are its symptoms?  Prevention.”  In the other photo, Claude Thomas registers patients.  The venue was very conducive to an effective clinic and Sakala staff were terrific at organizing the large number of patients.  The success of the event has certainly not impeded our plans to hold regular mobile clinics here!

Last week, Dr Hyppolite, Nurse Georges and Nurse Alcius visited an exemplary school in Cité Soleil.  It is called the Institution Mixte Union des Apôtres — a free school funded by an agency called Prodev.  The school had requested the visit to make sure that none of the students were suffering from malnutrition.  In the end, after providing a quick check-up for 75 children, it was determined that only one child was suffering from inadequate nutrition.  She was put into the medika mamba nutritional program. Overall, an affirming visit for the school and a positive day for the staff.

The partnership did, however, immediately raise the question of whether or not the Lamp should take on similar assessments at other local schools, schools which do not benefit from external funding nor provide food for their students two times a day as the Union des Apôtres does.

The question was quickly answered in the affirmative and we are looking forward to both strengthening our relationship with local schools and also taking pro-active measures to identify those children whose growth, mental abilities and resistance to disease (among other things) are being compromised by malnutrition.

On April 6, an awards ceremony was held that had very special significance for the Lamp.  Daniel Tillias received the Human Rights Award from the Haiti Solidarity Network of the North East at their annual dinner and dance.

Daniel is an active and committed member of the Lamp’s board of directors.  He is also the founder and director of an organization named Sakala which operates a program for Cité Soleil youth, not far from the Lamp’s clinic.  Daniel grew up in Cité Soleil himself and is a sterling role model for the youth of the area.  His program includes a large urban garden, tutoring for local school children, organized sports activities and community service initiatives.  Sakala aims to promote values of peace, respect, physical fitness and environmental responsibility.   It is real, ground-level community development.

The Lamp is currently developing plans with Daniel that will see us collaborate on several activities, including mobile clinics at Sakala, and efforts to enhance health and peace education at local schools.

Congratulations, Daniel!  It is richly deserved.

Last week the Lamp for Haiti Health Center received a welcome addition.  A very portable and very user-friendly EKG machine.  After training, Medical Director Dr. Barrère Hyppolite put it to immediate good use, using it eight times on the day of its arrival.

The Lamp clinic in Bwa Nèf is a primary health care center, but it is also the first, and often the only, medical facility utilized by an enormous number of low income families from the surrounding portions of Cite Soleil.  For this reason, the Lamp is constantly assessing the needs of the community in the interest of providing the most holistic care possible.

The ability to assess cardiac function and diagnose heart conditions is a valuable new tool for our doctors, made all the more valuable by its limited operating costs.  The unit connects to a laptop and the results are printed out on an ordinary printer.  For a relatively small initial investment of $4,000 we will be able to provide cardiology services for hundreds (or thousands) of patients.  This is especially exciting when one realizes that patients would need to pay approximately 600 to 750 Haitian gourdes (i.e., 15 to 20 US dollars) for results at a hospital or private clinic.  Although it does not sound like much, this cost almost always means that the patient simply does not receive an EKG.   Average wages in Cité Soleil are less than a dollar a day.  It is immensely satisfying to be able to provide this basic service as a matter of course.