One Year Out from the Quake in Haiti

One year ago today, the earth shook. At 4:53 pm, Haiti experienced a 7.0 magnitude earthquake that killed hundreds of thousands and forever changed the lives of those who survived.

In the days that followed, we at Hospitals of Hope thought and prayed about our response. Calls poured into our office from supporters wanting to know how they could help and if we were going to send any disaster relief teams.

We decided that the best way Hospitals of Hope could contribute was by helping to build medical infrastructure, much of which was destroyed by the quake. As we talked to other organizations on the ground in Haiti, they told us, "We have enough doctors. We just don't have anywhere to work."

When we announced what we had decided to do, our supporters and the Wichita community were quick to respond. Volunteers poured into our office to help with construction of two "Clinics in a Can" -- self-contained clinics built in shipping containers. Area businesses donated building materials and medical supplies, and cash donations flowed in. Within weeks, the clinics were finished and ready to ship.

On the day the first clinic opened, it saw nearly 200 patients.

Since then, we have sent a third clinic to Haiti, and we're in the process of building a small hospital, constructed from three shipping containers.

Haiti has a long way to go. Many are still living in camps, cholera has taken thousands of lives, and the birth rate has tripled in the last year, leaving children abandoned by desperate mothers.

But Hospitals of Hope, the organizations we partner with, and countless others remain committed to making a difference in Haiti, one life at a time. Thanks to you, our clinics are offering quality medical care to many Haitians -- a vital step in the process of rebuilding.

The problems in Haiti won't disappear overnight, but we remain committed to our work there. The new hospital is due to ship this spring, and we will be sending a volunteer team this summer. For more information about how you can help, call our office at 316.262.0964 or send us an email at info@hospitalsofhope.org.

Things We Are Thankful For

This Thanksgiving, we'd like to take a minute to stop and reflect on the ways God has blessed our ministry. Here's a brief list of things that Hospitals of Hope is thankful for:

• Our Heavenly Father, whose mercies are new every morning
• The opportunity we have to share his love through this ministry
• The chance we have had over this last year to expand our ministry though Clinics in a Can – and the way this aspect of our ministry continues to grow
• Our partnerships in Liberia, which are growing and bearing fruit
• The gifts of good health, plenty of food, and clean water
• Our amazing international volunteers, who give of their time, their talents, their energy, and their compassion.
• For the way God is working all over the world – bringing us volunteers from all over the US and from as far away as Australia, New Zealand, and Scotland
• Our local volunteers, who have done an amazing job organizing our warehouse, helping build Clinics in a Can, and keeping our office running
• Our interns over the past year – Andrew, Savanna, and Amanda – who have been a huge help and done great work
• Our donors – those who have supported us faithfully for years and those we have just met
• Our local partners in Wichita, like Wesley Medical Center, who has been a huge supporter of our work in Haiti
• Our US staff members, who give so much of themselves to our work
• Our Bolivia staff members, who work hard to serve the community surrounding our hospital
• Guillermo and Claudia, our new guest house hosts, who are going to do a fabulous job
• YOU! Thank you for all that you do to support our ministry!

For the Love of Languages (Guest Post by Letitia Juday)

Thrilling. That is the best word for it.

Speaking in a second language is an experience everyone should wish for, and a skill everyone should pursue. I know it is difficult to be excited when we are required to learn a language in high school or college. Classrooms are not famous for being exciting or thrilling. But let me tell you: if you work hard in the classroom and you are granted the awesome blessing of being able to travel to a country where your second language is spoken, the reward is huge.

Take today for example: Tiffany, Elle and I were supposed to go with the Bolivian medical director of Hospitals of Hope to the largest public hospital in Cochabamba, where he also works. Leta had work to do for the US office, so I was going to be the only person present who could speak Spanish and English. I was nervous; I always get nervous when I am designated “The Translator.” It’s quite a lot of pressure. I love it, and I am so honored to have this skill, but I am far from bilingual still, and I often cannot understand what a Bolivian says, simply because my vocabulary is not that huge.

But I had nothing to be nervous about today. This doctor is such a friendly, kind man, and loads of fun! We got in his car (I sat up front, so I helped myself to the seat belt, and it was my first time wearing one since arriving in Bolivia in August) and drove off toward the public hospital. I told him that earlier that morning, I had been watching Madagascar in Spanish to make my brain switch over to thinking in Spanish. He started singing, “I like to move it, move it” but in Spanish, and would randomly burst out into this song all morning. He is a genius for languages, speaking Spanish, Guarani, Quechua and Aymara. And although he says he does not like English and does not want to learn it, he knows some words from movies, like “Very good,” “You’re welcome,” “Alright. Let’s go!” “I got it,” etc. He asked me how to say “I think” and how to say “I am your father” from Star Wars.

At times, the English words that would burst from his mouth would make us burst out laughing. We passed a car accident and after clicking his tongue and commenting on the number of accidents in Bolivia, he said in English, “Destroyer! Superman!”

We got to the public hospital (which, let me just say, was NOT as nice as Hospitals of Hope), and found out that his boss was not going to be at work for a few more hours. So the doctor told us he would bring us back tomorrow at 2:00 PM. I wondered if that meant we weren’t going to stay today, but I did not ask. We followed him through the hospital and down the street and soon found ourselves back at his car. And we left. And stopped for a coke, and came home. So, basically, I translated for a ride around the city and brief stroll through the public hospital.

I have definite off-days and on-days when it comes to understanding and speaking Spanish. I’d say today was an on-day. I prayed that it would be. But that’s what makes me so nervous about being the designated translator. If it’s an off-day, there is much communication that gets lost, and it is my fault. But that’s what makes on-days so fabulous! Without me, there would be no communication between the two languages. It is SUCH a beautiful thing to be the channel of communication, to see people’s face light up with understanding as you explain what the other person said, to watch them laugh with delight after you translate a joke.

And even though translating is pretty darn awesome, my favorite is simply having a conversation with someone in Spanish. Although I usually do not ponder the situation while it’s happening, I look back and say to myself in total amazement, “Wow. I was communicating in a different language! Not English!”

I do not want you to get the idea that learning a second language is always peaches and lollipops. Unfortunately, my brain gets exhausted very quickly and I am often frustrated when I don’t understand something. My English is getting worse as my Spanish gets better. Once I was trying to say that many doctors were… but I could not think of the word. I scrunched up my face and thought and thought. Finally, Leta asked, “Do you know the word in Spanish?” I nodded. “Orgulloso!” And then she told me that the word I was searching for was arrogant.

But even though it is a tiring, often embarrassing, and frustrating process, as my Australian friends would say, “I am heaps grateful” for the opportunity to be in a situation where I have to learn Spanish. I would go through much worse than a little exhaustion and frustration to have the invaluable skill of communicating with millions more people than I could before.

Thanks for all the prayers concerning my language learning. Although I was super discouraged only yesterday, I can objectively say that I am speaking and understanding TONS more than when I first got here. When you pray for me, pray that I will be able to persevere through the discouragement that will never completely leave.

And to those of you studying another language, take heart! Study that grammar, perfect your pronunciation, and be ready for the day that God will give you the opportunity to become proficient.

Check out Letitia's blog (http://pakasqa.wordpress.com/) to read more about her experiences in Bolivia.

Hola de Bolivia!

As I write this, I'm sitting in the dining room of the HOH guest house in Vinto, Bolivia. One of the volunteers is playing the guitar in the background, and another group of them is in the kitchen making potstickers for dinner. We haven't been able to find quite all the required ingredients, so there have been a few creative substitutions. I think that's the way a lot of our cooking will be around here.

It's hard to believe that I've only been here for two days. We've kept busy at the hospital, visiting orphanages, buying groceries (which is quite a long process here), and navigating the public transportation. I'm here for three months, filling in as the guest house hostess until our new guest house hosts can start in December. It's been a lot of fun so far, although a few of us are battling colds and everyone is pretty tired from all we've been doing.

We're trying to take it a bit easier right now, until everyone gets rested up, but we've still got a lot planned. We're heading to the Casa de Alegria, a girls' orphanage, around 6 pm, and then we'll come back to the house for a late dinner. We'll also be making plans for our visit to the boys' orphanage tomorrow, where we'll be doing hygiene education and playing soccer. One of the boys from that orphanage is in the hospital here. He's improving, but it's a bit lonely for him, since he doesn't have parents or siblings to keep him company. One of the volunteers has really taken him under her wing, reading Bible stories to him and checking in on him throughout the day. We're hoping and praying that he'll be able to go home soon.

Thus far, I'm enjoying the change in pace and scenery. The volunteers have been wonderful, jumping in to help around the guest house, bravely sharing their testimonies at the hospital, and playing with kids at the orphanages. Over the next couple of months, I'll continue to keep you posted about life around the hospital and guest house. For now, I'd better get back to work. Hasta luego!

The Hope of Glory

Check out this reflection by Peter Wickwire, one of our Liberia volunteers:

As I am sure you know, SMP [a Wheaton College program with which HOH is partnering] offers so many different and even unusual experiences, and Liberia was by no means an exception! I spent six weeks in this hospital that was located on the coast of the beautiful Atlantic. It would have felt more like paradise had their not been daily reminders of the travesty and horror of the civil war that had ravaged the nation. Daily I saw and interacted with beautiful Liberian people, but often their beauty was masked by an emotional callous that set in from the constant death and torture caused by witless militia wreaking havoc across the country.

I loved my time at the hospital. At first it was a little difficult getting our foot in the door. Often they would say, "You're welcome, you're welcome here" and then do nothing to help us get set up. Mostly I think it is because they had never had such newbies come to them, and so while they were used to white people coming in and taking charge we were there as inexperienced pre-med students. Soon, however, they began to understand that we were there to be taught and then to use that to serve.

By two weeks into our time I had scrubbed in on surgeries (C-sections, hernia repairs, appendectomies, hysterectomies, myomectomies, ovarectamies, etc), I dressed wounds and did stitches, I did a circumcision, and I moved on to the OB ward where I got to take care of pregnant ladies and those who were ready to deliver. I listened to fetal hearts, I set up IV's for pregnant woman with malaria, I inserted catheters to prep woman for C-sections, and I even got to deliver a baby all by myself!!! It was such a momentous thing... to see life come into this world and the pain that has to take place for it to happen. Really makes the imagery in the Bible, as in the pains of childbirth, a lot more real (Romans 8)... And as it says in that passage, "the creation groans in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed" it was very easy to see that in Liberia. Amidst so much pain and suffering, I had to daily remember the hope of glory, the hope of Christ removing the evil and ugly from this world.

Summer in Liberia: A Volunteer Story

We have a team of students from Wheaton College serving at ELWA Hospital in Liberia this summer. When HOH staff traveled to Liberia a couple of weeks ago, we interviewed them about their experiences. Here are some excerpts from one of the interviews:

My name is Peter Wickwire, and I’m part of a group of three that has come to ELWA Hospital in Monrovia, Liberia for 6 weeks. We’ve had a blast so far. It’s been about 4 weeks, and each week has given us something entirely different than the one before it.

I went to the OR to start with. I’m so thankful I went to the OR. It was a really good landing for me in the clinic. The OR is pretty much like the functioning ER, the functioning operating room. The first couple days were difficult to get settled into. I don’t think they were used to premed students coming in. They didn’t understand back then that we were really here to be taught, and then, using what we’re taught, serve. It was really just watching people, shadowing from the corner, silently watching people.

Really my in was that I watched a nurse folding gauze for surgery and wound dressings, and the next day, without them asking, I just got up and started doing it, and he’s just like, “Oh, where’d you learn how to do that?” They kind of realized that we can learn, and so time went on and day after day I started doing more things, learning new things.

I saw a c-section one day. It was the first c-section I had ever seen in my life. The next surgery after that was another c-section, and they’re like, “Okay, Peter, you’re scrubbing on this one.” I was like “What are you talking about?” but I ended up scrubbing on the surgery, and it was a really neat experience.

After the first week or so, I think they really picked up on the fact that really we’re here to be taught and really here to just serve them, and they really started understanding that and utilizing that. Also, I think what helped was founding relationships with them and spending time just talking, and learning, and exchanging personal stories and life stories of how the war has shattered this country. It’s good to hear their stories of what they had to go through. It kind of opens doors for you to be part of their lives.

I think one of the difficult things for me being in Liberia is this place is really so torn. The buildings you see when you’re driving by are a living history of the war that happened so recently. It’s hard to be in a country so full of pain and just coming out of that. It’s a beautiful time, and yet it’s a difficult time.

I think my favorite thing of being in the clinic has not been delivering a baby or stitching up patients but getting to know the Liberians and speaking Liberian English to them and joking around with them and them loving to see that I’m trying to learn their culture. People are really grateful.

This trip has been so beneficial to me as a premed student looking in the future to going into medicine internationally, to use it for furthering Christ and his kingdom, and I couldn’t have thought of a better experience for me. They’re kind of teaching me what it looks like to use the resources that you have, which here are very limited, to give the best health care possible. There is just such a pressing need for help in this country, and it was good to visualize that. It’s a renewed fuel to the passion and fire I had to become an international physician. I really hope to someday come back and serve in a country like this, if not maybe here.

Hope in the Midst of Suffering

Nestor Hugo, our staff pastor in Bolivia, just returned from a training conference. This translation is from the update he sent us on his return to the hospital.

Tuesday, July 6, at 7:35 in the morning, the first thing I did was visit the inpatients. Of the 30 that had arrived as a result of the tragic bus accident, there were still a few, among them a man named Jorge* from the village of Sacaba who had had his arm amputated. After presenting the Plan of Salvation, I prayed for him and blessed his food. A little before I left, he asked me in Quechua to cut his bread for him because his right arm was in a cast and had an IV.

Preaching a little later in the waiting room to nearly 20 people, I began to cry because of seeing the suffering of our fellow human beings, and nearly all who heard the message of the Plan of Salvation prayed the prayer inviting Jesus Christ to enter their hearts.

The first day back in my pastoral ministry, I had another blessing because two brothers in Christ, members of the Gideons, came with me to the prayer room and asked me how many inpatients and medical personnel we had, to give them New Testaments with Psalms and Proverbs. After praying with me, they personally gave the New Testaments to the inpatients, doctors, and paramedics, as well as to the patients waiting for appointments.

May the immense love of our Eternal Heavenly Father, the infinite grace of our redeemer, and the real intervention of the Holy Spirit be with all of us today and forever. Amen.

* Name changed.

A Whirlwind Trip in an Ambulance

A bucket of chicken, a Tom-Tom and two ambulances- that's just about all we took with us on a recent trip to the port at Houston. Four of us drove the new ambulances through the night from Wichita, KS to Houston, TX in order to get them on a ship headed to Bolivia. We encountered torrential downpours, sleep deprivation and problems with the port authority, but in the end everything went fine. Now the ambulances are headed down to serve at our hospital in Cochabamba, Bolivia.

We currently have two ambulances serving the hospital in Bolivia, but they are old (1990 & 1993) and have a lot of wear on them from driving in the mountains. Yost Auto Service, here in Wichita, has done a great job of helping us get the necessary parts to maintain those ambulances, but they are in continual need of repairs. There continues to be a huge need for ambulances in Cochabamba because of the large number of accidents that occur in the mountains, but there are very few actual ambulances operating in the city (most are vans or trucks that have been crudely converted). To make matters worse, the Bolivian government recently passed an ordinance outlawing the importation of any vehicle older than four years into the country, making it very difficult to send any affordable ambulances.

However, a few months ago Hospitals of Hope found three nice 2006 diesel ambulances at auction. Each one costs $125,000 new, but they were selling for much less, so we jumped at the chance to get them for pennies on the dollar. Who would have thought that we could find new ambulances that met the criteria set by the Bolivian government for such a great price? I am reminded of Matthew 6:25-34, where Jesus says that we have no need to worry because our Father knows our needs. Here at HOH, we continually see God's faithfulness in all that we do.

The two ambulances that we sent are in fantastic shape and will be able to dramatically improve emergency response around Cochabamba. The third ambulance does not have an engine, so we are in the process of getting a new one put in. If you would be interested in helping to contribute to a new engine, please contact me at daniel@hospitalsofhope.org.

~Daniel

Hope to Walk Again

When she came in to Hospitals of Hope, Gabriela* was convinced she’d never walk again. A year before, she’d been in an accident that had left her leg badly broken. She had been treated at another hospital, which had put an external fixator on her leg to hold the bone in place while it healed. Whether from lack of money or improper treatment, the external fixator remained in place a year later, and Gabriela still had no use of her leg.

When Gabriela came to Hospitals of Hope, staff and volunteers discovered that a section of bone in her leg had completely dissolved. Through surgery, they were able to remove a portion of her hip and use it and a metal rod to replace the missing section of bone.

A few days after surgery, when the doctor came in and told Gabriela that they were going to try to help her to stand, she didn’t believe him. She had given up on the possibility of using her leg. When hospital staff helped Gabriela to her feet and she was able to stand with the help of a walker, her entire countenance changed. Her face lit up as she realized the possibility that she would one day walk again.

People like Gabriela are the reason we do the work that we do. So many times, situations like Gabriela’s leave people in despair. But we serve a good God, one who has good plans—plans for hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11), both for this life and the life to come.

*Name changed.

Dios le Bendiga

It never ceases to amaze me how beautifully people pray in Spanish. I just finished reading a letter from Nestor Hugo, our staff pastor in Bolivia, and he greeted me with these words:

“It is my petition in prayer, that our Eternal Heavenly Father bless you, guide you, and prosper you in all of your activities every day. May the grace and peace of our Triune God be with you.”

Wow. I feel blessed by simply knowing that someone is praying that for me.

Lately, we at the Hospitals of Hope office have been desiring to give prayer a bigger place in our ministry. We want to make sure that we’re praying more regularly as a staff, and we want to enlist more prayer support for our work. We want to develop a group of people who will commit to praying regularly for our ministry, with whom we can share our specific prayer concerns. Jeanie Tidwell, one of our faithful local volunteers, has agreed to coordinate our prayer team, communicating our prayer needs and celebrating the answers.

Would you consider being a part of that team?

If so, please let me know by email, at leta@hospitalsofhope.org, or by phone, at 316.262.0964.

In the words of Nestor Hugo, “May our merciful and compassionate God bless you.”

The Best Volunteers Ever

I’m pretty sure I’ve mentioned this before, but I have to say it again—we have great volunteers.

With only three of us on staff here in Wichita, there’s far more work to do than we can handle on our own. With office tasks to complete, donations to inventory and pack, medical equipment to test and fix, trips to coordinate, events to plan, etc, our work can seem pretty overwhelming. But our volunteers make it manageable.

In the last couple of weeks, volunteers have built a new set of shelves in the warehouse and worked on organizing, packing crates, completing paperwork, and more. Here’s a picture of the new shelves. (As you can tell, they're already getting full!)

So, to all of you who give of your time, energy, and money to make our work possible, thanks. We couldn’t do it without you!

PA Students at Work in Bolivia

A team of 5 students from Wichita State University has arrived at our hospital in Bolivia, where they’ll be working for the next month. These students, in their 2nd year of the Physician Assistant program at WSU, are completing a rotation at our level II hospital, where they’ll learn about treating patients in a third world setting while assisting hospital staff.

This year’s students will be supervised by Michael Wawrzewski, PA-C, Hospitals of Hope’s founder and CEO, as well as by E.J. Reppert, MD, MPH. They will have the opportunity to observe differences in the healthcare systems of the US and Bolivia, as well as to see cases that they would not normally see in a US hospital, such as Chagas disease.

One former student, who has since spent time working in Afghanistan, commented that, in Bolivia, "you learn about health care that has limitations of money, medical supplies, instruments, and medicine, so you have to be more creative. That’s an excellent thing to learn as a medical provider."

We can set up rotations in Family Practice, Ob/Gyn, General Surgery, Internal Medicine, Pulmonary Medicine, Orthopedics, and Pediatrics at our hospital in Bolivia. We have formal arrangements with schools including WSU, Salus University, and Yale, but we have worked with other schools, as well.

If you’re interested in completing a rotation with us, email daniel@hospitalsofhope.org or call our office at 316.262.0964.

What does it mean to be a missionary? (Guest post by Thomas Stanley)

So you’re called to be a missionary? Great!

Start praying, find a missions agency which fits your direction, set a date, raise the funds and pack your bags.

Is it really that easy? Yes and no.

Yes, you can go through a checklist of steps needed to go on a trip, but, when you are in the realm of missions, the complexity of the process resides in the internal battles.

Last year I was fortunate enough to go on a month-long mission trip to Bolivia for Hospitals of Hope. My experience with short term missions (1 week to 2 months) raised several personal issues.

Were my motives pure? Was I simply doing it to appear pious? Is it merely a vacation to avoid the problems which exist in my current life? Isn’t there mission I could be doing in my own town?

I mean, poverty exists in Wichita. There are thousands who don’t know Christ in my own backyard. The problems of drugs, perversion, and violence are prevalent in my very neighborhood.

These issues paced through my mind in the months before the trip and lingered afterward.

This mild existential crisis mellowed after clarifying my purpose. The purpose of my trip wasn’t to simply do the lofty work of saving sinners, curing the sick, and fixing the country's problems.

My purpose was to serve the Lord in all capacities and view the trip as not an end, but a means to an end.

My mission trip didn’t end July 8 when I left Cochabamba, it merely began. The short-term mission trip gave a drastic paradigm shift in how I viewed the world. If you’re open to it, it can change the way you view your neighborhood, your city and your daily ministry.

I heard a pastor say, “If you’re a missionary, then what does that make everyone else?” It is not merely the job of a missionary to do missions. In Matthew 28:19-20, Christ calls us all to “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”

Does this mean you shouldn’t go on mission trips? Certainly not, the experience of immersing yourself in a different language and culture is unlike any other. Serving the Lord internationally is difficult yet fulfilling.

But if you are thinking about missions, I would encourage you to not simply work toward a trip but toward a lifestyle change. Again, the trip itself is not the end; it is a means to a greater end of serving the Lord in diligently your entire life.

Expanding Health Care in Liberia

The man who came into the ER was vomiting blood. A viper had bitten him, and it had taken him more than 24 hours to reach the hospital, which was far away from where he lived.

He could only afford one vial of antivenin, so that was all the public hospital was willing to give him. It was clear, though, that that wasn’t going to be enough.

The Hospitals of Hope team, which was at the hospital installing medical equipment, saw the man’s condition and quickly decided to help cover the cost of his treatment. By that point, unfortunately, it was too late.

This man’s life likely could have been saved by quicker treatment, but Liberia’s lack of medical infrastructure makes it difficult to access health care.

In the past two years, we have primarily focused our work at JFK Medical Center, since this is the referral center for the entire country of Liberia and since it lacked basic medical equipment. In the last year, Hospitals of Hope has donated $1.1 million of medical equipment to JFK, greatly increasing its capacity to effectively treat patients.

Now, however, after February’s trip installing x-ray machines, a central oxygen system, and more, we believe that it is time for us to expand our reach in Liberia, working with smaller clinics and hospitals to ensure easier access to care.

In April, we will be sending another container of medical equipment to Liberia, this one primarily aimed at equipping smaller clinics. We will work with 2 other organizations on this project, providing the equipment necessary to supply the medical clinics they are building.

Another trip is planned for Liberia this summer, in the last 2 weeks of June or the beginning of July. If you are interested in joining this team, whether to treat patients, train staff, or install equipment, please contact Daniel White at daniel@hospitalsofhope.org.

Esperanza

Esperanza* was pregnant and living under a bridge. At just 17 years old, she already had a 2-year-old son and was expecting her second.

For street kids like Esperanza, healthcare of any kind is pretty far out of reach. The government hospital, which is supposed to provide care for the poor, discriminates against street kids, giving them insufficient care or flat-out refusing to treat them.

That had happened to Maria, a 14-year-old suffering from an infection so severe that she could barely walk, who was turned away at the door of the hospital, even though she had money to pay for treatment. Fortunately, in her case, missionaries intervened, possibly saving her life.

Diego wasn’t so lucky. He had been in the wrong place at the wrong time and had suffered severe wounds in a knife fight. While the government hospital treated him, they released him within 8 hours of major intestinal surgery. He died from infection less than 24 hours later.

Brianna Brown, a missionary affiliated with Hospitals of Hope, wanted to make sure that Esperanza and her baby didn’t fall through the cracks. She and another missionary arranged for housing for Esperanza, and she took her out of the city to Hospitals of Hope for pre-natal care.

The kindness of the hospital staff astonished Esperanza, as they treated her with dignity and respect and played with her son. She saw her baby boy growing healthily on the ultrasound, and, when she returned to the city, she couldn’t stop telling the other street kids about how clean the hospital was and how kindly the staff had treated her.

Esperanza’s baby, Luis, has since been born, strong and healthy, thanks in part to the care shown by the Hospitals of Hope staff. More than just medical care, however, Esperanza received the love of Jesus, expressed through the hospital staff and volunteers.


*Names have been changed.

Clinics, Liberia, and life at Hospitals of Hope

It’s been amazing seeing the way the Clinics in a Can have come along in the last couple of weeks. We’ve had a great group of volunteers coming in every day for the last few weeks, and Hutton Construction donated several of their employees for about 3 weeks. The clinics look great, and they’ll be a huge blessing to many in Haiti.

This Clinic in a Can project has definitely been a learning experience for me. While I haven’t been involved in the hands-on details, like sheet rocking and plumbing, I am learning my way around Home Depot, and I can now tell you what, exactly, a down cut jigsaw blade is!

Mike and Daniel are in Liberia right now, where they’ll be installing the medical equipment that we sent in December. The container has arrived in port and should be released from customs soon. Please pray for the quick release of the container and for safety as they unload it and install the equipment.

While they’re over there, I (Leta) am here in Wichita, working with volunteers to equip the clinics, pick up supplies, and run the day-to-day business of the office. There’s plenty of work to keep us all busy, so, if you’re in need of something to do, I could definitely put you to work. :) (You can send me an email at leta@hospitalsofhope.org or call me at 262.0964 if you’d like to come in.) Or, if you’d like to just drop by and see the Clinics, I’d love to show them to you; just give me a call to let me know when you’re coming. Either way, we’d love to see you!

Clinics in a Can

Thanks to many of you, we're making great progress on our Haiti relief efforts. As many of you know, Hospitals of Hope constructed a self-contained medical clinic in a shipping container -- called a Clinic in a Can -- in 2005. This clinic was initially utilized in Hurricane Katrina relief efforts and was then sent to Les Cayes, Haiti. This clinic is currently being put to use by relief workers, as refugees flee from Port Au Prince to the surrounding communities. But with hundreds of thousands injured, many hospitals destroyed, and relief teams operating in the open air or under tents, more medical facilities are desperately needed.

We plan to send 2 Clinics in a Can and a small hospital constructed out of 3 other shipping containers, and, thanks to your support, we should have the first of these clinics finished next week. We have had a number of volunteers coming in to help, and Hutton Construction has donated the time and expertise of many of its employees. A number of other local businesses have pitched in, including Wesley Medical Center, Castle Door, A & H Electric, Wilko Paints, and more.

To learn more about what we're doing in Haiti, or to see pictures of the Clinic in a Can, check out our Haiti Relief page. You can also find a list of items we still need there. If you're interested in donating items or in coming in to help out, give us a call at 316.262.0964 or email info@hospitalsofhope.org.

Haiti Relief - Clinic in a Can

Medical personnel in Haiti are currently treating patients out of tents, since many hospitals and clinics were destroyed by the recent earthquake. To meet the urgent medical needs Haitians are facing, Hospitals of Hope plans to construct and send 5 “Clinics in a Can”— self-contained medical clinics built in the back of 40’ shipping containers.

These clinics are durable and designed to survive earthquakes, hurricanes, and other natural disasters. While hospitals and clinics will take years to rebuild, we plan to have the first “Clinic in a Can” on the ground in Haiti in 5-6 weeks. Learn more about the previous “Clinic in a Can” that we sent to Haiti.

In our initial response, we will construct two clinics, each containing two 8’ x 12’ exam rooms, an 8’ x 11’ laboratory, and a storage area. We will coordinate with other organizations already on the ground in Haiti to ensure that the clinics are shipped to the areas of greatest need.

In the coming months, if funding is available, we plan to build a small hospital by combining three shipping containers in a U-shaped formation. This hospital will contain 1 surgical suite, 1 recovery room, 1 laboratory, 3 exam rooms, and a central courtyard.

If you would like to help build Clinics in a Can or would like to donate medical or construction supplies, please contact the Hospitals of Hope office at 316.262.0964 or via email at daniel@hospitalsofhope.org. To financially support our work in Haiti, please visit our website.

Current Medical Equipment Needs

* 6 roll-around stools
* Scales
* Syringes
* Gloves
* 6 swan-neck or other exam lights
* Orthopedic supplies (plaster of paris, casting material)
* IV supplies
* IVs
* 4x4 gauze
* Kerlix gauze
* Tongue depressors
* Urine dipsticks
* Blood pressure cuffs
* 6 Welch Allyn wall unit otoscopes/ ophthalmoscopes
* 3 mayo stands
* Microscopes and other basic lab equipment
* Manual surgical table (for future hospital)
* Overhead surgical light (for future hospital)

Disaster in Haiti

As I'm sure you've all heard by now, Haiti was hit yesterday by a devastating earthquake, registering 7.0 on the Richter scale. Several of you have contacted us about what Hospitals of Hope's response will be to the disaster and asking for ways that you can get involved.

After thinking and praying about the situation, we believe that organizations such as Samaritan's Purse and World Vision are in a better position to respond to the immediate crisis. These groups already have disaster response teams in motion, so we would urge you to support them, as the first couple of days after an event like this are the most crucial.

We have been working in Haiti for several years now, and we are committed to continuing our work there, especially in the wake of this disaster. We have a team going to Haiti in July of this year, and we may assemble a team to go in the next month or so, as well. If you or your church is assembling a team, we would be happy to donate medical supplies and equipment to support your trip. If you are interested either in joining a team or in donations of medical supplies, please email info@hospitalsofhope.org or call our office at 316.262.0964.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Haiti today, and we will continue to look for ways we can serve in the weeks and months ahead.

Container shipment headed to Liberia

Last week, we loaded up and shipped out another container to John F. Kennedy Medical Center in Liberia, West Africa. This container is full of medical equipment that will greatly improve patient care at the hospital-- including 4 x-ray machines (since the hospital currently doesn't have one), surgical instruments, operating room lights, a central suction system, sterilizers and patient monitors, hospital beds, and dental equipment.

We picked just about the coldest day so far this year to load up the container, as you can see from all the layers we're wearing! But we got everything loaded up and shipped out safely, and it's on its way. Mike and Daniel will be headed to Liberia in February to unload the container and install the equipment.