Fundraising Update: End of March

Thanks for being so gracious and generous! With $350, I'm exactly half-way to affording the plane ticket to Porrt-au-Prince, Haiti! I'll be posting these updates every time I blog, so please check back.

-Brianna

Shots & Vaccinations: Staying Healthy for Haitian Health Care

I've been feeling so much momentum in preparing for my medical mission to Montrouis, Haiti! My excitement is finally translating into action -- I'm physically preparing for the month and a half I'll be spending with at Canaan's clinic and orphanage.

Thanks so much for your positive response to my trip! I'm encouraged by the support, prayers, donations and e-mails I've been receiving from family and friends. I still have a lot of funds to raise, but I know that the stress is worth everything--working at the orphanage, the health clinic, and possibly gathering research on cross-cultural health care in the context of medical missions for my honors college thesis in the field of medical anthropology. The image (top right) is from Canaan's clinic.

Here's an update on medications, shots and vaccinations for international travel. I hope this information is helpful and informative for those considering medical missions:

I made an appointment at LSU's student health clinic with one of the physicians to discuss prescriptions for anti-malarial drugs. I was having trouble finding a place in Baton Rouge that could answer my questions about travel medicine, but sure enough, LSU has a fairly extensive immunization clinic that carries all of the shots I need. I'm not sure if the University will have anti-malarial drugs, but I'm sure I'll be able to fill my prescription somewhere before taking off in July.

Since I'll be in Haiti for an extended length of time, I think the most suitable anti-malarial medication would be the Chloroquine 500mg, which can be taken by mouth once a week. I would need to start a week before the trip, and continue it four weeks post-Haiti, which totals 11 pills (as opposed to doxycycline 100mg, which I would have to take daily during my trip and four weeks after)! I can't even remember to take my vitamins every day, so the once-a-week deal seems perfect.

As with many international travelers, I am required to be vaccinated against Hepatitis A (a series of shots), Hepatitis B and typhus. Luckily, the yellow fever vaccine is not necessary for travelers to Haiti. LSU offers student pricing per shot, which is also a huge relief (about $90 for the Hep. A 3-shot series, $35 for Hep. B and $48 for the typhus). This is one thing that I didn't budget for, but in hindsight it's necessary to be prepared for anything. After dealing with mono for months last semester, I'm still well aware of what happens when a health care provider is careless with her own health.

Other over-the-counter drugs recommended for Haiti include tylenol/motrin, antihistamine (for itching/sleeping), immodium AD (which saved my life while backpacking through France), and allergy medication. Canaan suggests taking one to two pepto bismal tablets three times a day while in Montrouis to decrease the chance of a stomach or intestinal infection . Apparently, stool and tongue turns black when you take this much pepto... That doesn't sound to appealing, so I'm going to look for an alternative to that advice. Perhaps some healthy doses or probiotics will work instead.

On a different note, I have the plane ticket times/dates narrowed down! I still have some more money to save and fund-raise until I'm able to forward my official trip itinerary to Canaan. Hopefully I will be able to purchase the ticket before gas prices rocket upward again!

3/31: With your help, we've raised $250 towards my fundraising goal!

Lot's of love! Thank you for keeping in touch.

Destination: Montrouis, Haiti

First off, thank you everyone for your tremendous support. I've received an overwhelmingly positive response towards my month and a half medical mission to Montrouis, Haiti this summer. I'm grateful for all your generosity and graciousness! It's such a blessing to be provided for, and to have this opportunity. Your donations are truly bringing me closer to Haiti, but I have a long way to go.

Click here for pictures of life an Canaan Christian Community.

Here's a little taste of Haitian history and background on Montrouis:

Since the 7.0 magnitude hurricane ravaged Port-au-Prince on Jan. 12, 2010, many people found themselves homeless. Homes, businesses, Parliament and the Presidential palace were reduced to rubble. Many children became newly orphaned, either because their families were among the estimated 220,000-318,000 killed, or because their parents were no longer able to take care of them. Haiti has suffered from various acute diseases, such as cholera, from contaminated water sources--especially difficult to eliminate with the estimated 1.6 million Haitian people packed in slums. In the more rural areas surrounding Port-au-Prince, malnutrition is prevalent.

Montrouis is a town located on the coast in western Haiti.

Here's some information from Canaan and their mission in Montrouis:

Canaan Christian Community was established in 1991 as a community of Christians that welcome people who need a place to belong. Most of the 110 residents are children who either do not have parents or whose parents are unable to provide care for them for various reasons. The leaders of the community strive to provide a safe haven for all who live or visit here. God has blessed us with facilities to provide a comfortable home for both residents and guests. Canaan is designed to be a place of peace and preparation. The founders and current leadership at Canaan is Pastor Henry and Sister Gladys.

The community is located near the town of Montrouis, approximately 80 kilometers north of Port Au Prince, the capital of Haiti. Guests from North America usually fly into the international airport in Port Au Prince and are met by Canaan staff. It takes approximately an hour and thirty minutes to make the trip from the airport to Canaan.

Canaan Christian Community is built on a hillside near the national highway overlooking the Caribbean. The hillside surrounding Canaan is dry desert just like Canaan was when the community was first established in 1991. Since then, God has blessed the planting of trees that has resulted in Canaan being the only shaded community in the area other than directly on the seaside. The buildings consist of dormitories for boys and girls, staff homes and guest facilities. Recently, the government has provided periodic electricity for the area. Generators provide electricity in the evenings when the government electricity is not available. There is usually no electricity available during the daylight hours. Drinking water is hauled in by Canaan staff and put through a purification system. Water for washing, bathing, etc. comes from a well on the property that is not used for drinking water.

Meals are served to the children and the staff in an outdoor, covered cafeteria. Meals prepared by the cooks, consist of simple but delicious food that the Lord provides through the donations of friends of Canaan. Rice and beans are the staple food along with local fresh vegetables that are served when funds are available. Meat is very expensive in Haiti and not as readily available as in North America.

My stay in Montrouis will cost $15 per day to offset the costs of food, lodging and transportation to and from the airport, which is an hour and a half away in Port-au-Prince. If you're interested in a tax-deductable donation, you can send me a check made out to Canaan Christian Community, which will all go towards living expenses during the time I'm in Haiti.If you have any questions or want to be notified via e-mail whenever I update my blog for my trip, or during my trip in the future, please contact be at bapiche@comcast.net. Again, thank you so much for your support!

Haiti Medical Mission: Summer 2011

Dear family and friends,

Summer 2011 is promising to be both challenging and exciting. Once I finish summer school at LSU, I will be flying more than 2,000 miles to serve as a medical missionary from July 12^th to August 17^th at Canaan Christian Community’s clinic in Montrouis, Haiti, located about 50 miles north of Port Au Prince.

The clinic serves up to 70 patients each day, as well as many of the children at Canaan’s orphanage located on site. After a tremendous amount of prayer and months of correspondence with the head nurse and founders of Canaan, I’m looking forward to this amazing opportunity to share my love with one of the world’s poorest countries.

I am travelling alone without any support from any organization or group. Inspired by faith, I have planned this trip on my own, but cannot get there and back without the support of my family and friends. Anything from prayers to monetary support will help me on my journey! This is not a vacation or site-seeing trip. I will be spending all my time at the clinic, orphanage, or anywhere the clinic needs me helping the Haitian people. My main expenses will be for travel, food and shelter in the time I’m away: $2,950. Any extra money I raise will go towards the children living at the orphanage and clinic, but I still have a long way to go.

As a medical anthropology student and Christian woman, I am passionate about providing culturally competent health care. Canaan's medical clinic (in conjunction with the orphanage) is the type of cross-cultural setting I best serve.

I did quite a bit of research on organizations that pursue medical missions, and I learned about Canaan from my friend from LSU’s Tiger Band, Tommy Chapman, who served as a teacher at the orphanage last summer. Canaan feels like a good fit for my interests in medical missions, my skills in medical practice and childcare, and my desire to serve within a spiritually committed environment.

I previously travelled to Mexico for an orphanage-renovation project in 2005 and participated in inner city Houston ministry missions in 2006 with my home church, Crosspoint Community of Katy, TX.

Although I'm still a student, my professional background is in medicine: I work at both Baton Rouge General hospitals as an electrocardiogram technician and have also spent some time at Our Lady of the Lake Catholic hospital. I am comfortable working in a clinic, where I serve most often at the General hospitals, as well as in Emergency Room care. I’m saving all the extra money I make from my job as an electrocardiogram technician at Baton Rouge General Hospital, as well as babysitting on the side, to pay for as much of the trip as I can.

This trip embodies the work I want to do for the rest of my life.

I speak intermediate level French, and have always been drawn to Haiti because of its Francophone roots. The health clinic at Canaan no longer has any interpreters working at the clinic, and I'm thrilled to know that my enjoyment of speaking French can be used to help communicate with patients and clinic staff. Hopefully by breaking down the language barrier, Canaan can improve the degree of care provided to patients.

I’ll be documenting my journey (only when Internet is available) on my blog. My e-mail is bapiche@comcast.net, so please feel free to send me a message with any questions, concerns or words of wisdom. Please send me your e-mail addresses if you’re interested in receiving updates on how close I am to my monetary goal of $2,950. I will post expenditures on my blog and, if I surpass my goal, I will post the amount of your donations going directly to the clinic. If you're interested in donating, please e-mail me and I will send you my address!

For more information on Canaan Christian Community’s mission, please visit their Web site at http://www.canaanchristiancommunity.com/.

Thank you so much to supporting me in any way you’re comfortable with. I hope this letter catches you in good health and good spirits, and I look forward to hearing from you soon. I have approval from the clinic and they are expecting me, so I will need to purchase my plane ticket soon. Please be a part of this experience with me.

Love,

Brianna Piche