May has been a busy month here at Care 2 Communities!  We successfully opened our newest clinic, in Acul du Nord, Haiti, and we now welcome the newest member to our Board of Directors– Sally Ourieff M.D..

Sally is the founder and principal of Translational Consulting, which helps individual leaders adopt meaningful and sustainable strategies for meeting their professional goals.  Her experience as a physician and a leader in the corporate world, makes her a great addition to our Board.

Sally has spent her career coaching physicians, scientists, and healthcare leaders in academic, community and industry settings.  She is very familiar with today’s challenges facing the healthcare and scientific communities.

We’re so excited to have Sally join our board as we continue our work in Northern Haiti, and begin planning for the second half of 2015!

Last week marked an exciting time for C2C as we opened our newest clinic in Acul du Nord, Haiti. I was able to travel to Haiti with our program team to help with the opening. While there I had the chance to see how the clinic itself has come together, speak with community members and hear how they feel about a new clinic opening, and hear feedback from the first patients to receive care. I was also able to spend time at C2C’s other clinic in Camp Coq, where we have served thousands of patients since opening in 2013.

C2C has been preparing for this opening for months, rehabbing the containers that made up our clinic in Port-au-Prince, moving them north, and prepping the new site. Local laborers helped construct restrooms and storage near the containers. C2C staff from our Camp Coq Clinic worked one-on-one with the new staff members to train them and share their advice and experience. And our two new Community Health Workers (CHWs) have been going house to house getting input from family members on the specific needs of the community. All of this planning came together for a successful opening on May 5^th.

The first patient to visit the clinic was 4-year-old Mina (pictured above), who, with her grandmother, was waiting to see the doctor before doors had even opened. Suffering from a stomachache and fever, Mina saw Dr. Sévère for a check-up and analysis. Mina’s grandmother, who mentioned planning to return the next day for a check-up for her other grandchild, said, “He was a very kind doctor. We are from a neighboring town and will come again for future needs. I was telling other people about this new clinic just yesterday.”

Two-year-old Christi (pictured right) and her family were the next patients. Christi’s mother, who also came for a check-up for herself, said, “The doctor was very good, and everything went well. This clinic is very good for the community.” Christi’s 3-year-old cousin, Kensi (pictured left), followed. Kensi’s mother was able to have Kensi examined by the doctor and pick up her  prescription, all on-site.

Speaking with members of the Acul du  Nord community, I heard the same  theme from most households—the  community had been in desperate need  of a local clinic, and one that would be  open to serve patients long-term.

Rosie (pictured below), who lives just down the street from the clinic site, said, “We appreciate this clinic a lot. In the past there were passing visitors and organizations, but nothing to bring any development to the community. C2C seems to be here to stay. This is the beginning of good work.” Rosie and her family have been kept informed of the clinic’s opening and updates through C2C’s CHWs.

Since opening day, the clinic has seen an average of 11 patients per day, and those numbers are trending upward. The high patient satisfaction rates measured through exit surveys, and valuable support directly from the community all point to an incredible – and lengthy – partnership between C2C and Acul du Nord.

C2C’s first patient in Acul du Nord was Mina, pictured above, a 4-year-old who lives nearby with her grandmother and siblings. She has been having stomach troubles, and her grandmother was at the front of a long line on opening day. Her grandmother shared that the clinic services and staff were excellent, and she knows exactly where she will bring her grandchildren any time they do not feel well!
Thanks to supporters, this clinic is just one of two we will open this year. Each clinic will serve thousands of patients each year. Special thanks to the group of generous alumni from the College of the Holy Cross and the Emerging Markets Trade Benefit for providing the funding necessary to open this clinic in a new community.

As Mother’s Day approaches, I pause to give thanks for my two teenagers. In this pause, too, come other feelings and images, as I remember the mothers and babies I recently met in Namibia.

My son, Benjamin, and I travelled to the Democratic Resettlement Community (DRC) – a temporary settlement of about 10,000 people outside of Swakopmund, Namibia.

As we flew over vast desert and caught our first glimpses of the area, I thought it was beautiful to look at but must be harsh to live in. I was looking forward to observing the C2C clinic, which has been working in partnership with the Namibian Ministry of Health for the last two years. The clinic is part of the Ministry’s outreach program aimed at reducing the country’s stubbornly high maternal and infant mortality rates.

Thousands of families have moved from rural areas in this enormous, but sparsely populated country to find work in larger cities like Swakopmund. They end up living in vast stretches of temporary slum dwellings constructed of cardboard and scrap metal. These communities stretch for miles, housing poor families. Very few houses have electricity, heat or running water. Jobs are scarce and the weather is harsh.

As a mother, my primal need to keep my children healthy, well fed and safe would be very challenged here. Before the C2C clinic opened, a pregnant woman in the DRC had to walk several miles to access health care. She would lose a day of work, travel with other small children and wait for many hours to be seen. Now, she travels far less distance and knows that she will be treated quickly and receive all of her antenatal care, including vitamins and blood tests (including HIV and TB). Local nurses who speak her language will greet her. She will participate in health education sessions focusing on nutrition, self-care, and signs of danger in pregnancy.

As I reflect on Mother’s Day, I think how easy it might be to take a safe home, high-quality health care, nutritious food, and a million other things for granted. I think of the mothers worldwide whose lives look very different from ours. I am proud to be part of a wonderful organization like C2C that is meeting the health needs of a very vulnerable community of women whose greatest wish is also mine – healthy, happy children.

As you think of your mother – or your children – next weekend, please consider making a gift to the women and children C2C serves. You can:

1. Make a gift to C2C in honor of your mother or other special women in your life. We will send each honoree a special card in the mail notifying her of your gift.
2. Volunteer in our office. Help us with fundraising, filing, communications, or in a capacity that takes advantage of your skills.
3. Tell a friend about C2C – send him or her our video and share why C2C is important to you.
4. Buy tickets to C2C’s June 13th Selebrasyon – and bring your mom!