MEDICC (Medical Education Cooperation with Cuba)

from the website:

Commitment in the Face of Calamity

November 26, 2010--Haiti is in the news once again, ten months after the earthquake that leveled the capital of Port-au-Prince. The headlines carry another wave of devastation as Hurricane Tomas pummeled the country, also reeling from a dangerous cholera epidemic that has already felled more than 1,400 and hospitalized over 25,000.

But the headlines don’t bring you the day-to-day work of the 855-member Cuban-led medical team in Haiti, or the hundreds of Haitian and Latin American physicians in its ranks, graduates of the Latin American Medical School (ELAM) in Havana. They are engaged in a herculean cooperation effort to build a health system to serve all Haitians, including the 1.3 million left homeless by the quake and the 300,000+ that sustained injuries.

“The Cubans have been working in the Haitian public health system since 1998,” notes MEDICC US Director Diane Appelbaum. “Since the earthquake they’ve been joined by these ELAM graduates whose commitment is really admirable.”

MEDICC is working with Global Links and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) to direct essential medical materials to the network of Cuban-trained Haitian and Latin American physicians on the front lines of this effort. Four 40-foot sea containers stocked with critical medical equipment and supplies have been shipped to date, supporting health needs throughout the country.

Most recently shipments of hospital mattresses and linens were urgently requested by PAHO to help address the cholera epidemic. Other material medical aid has included: operating room equipment, instruments and supplies for surgeries; adult and infant physical therapy equipment, wheelchairs and canes for rehabilitation; and dental furnishings and supplies for a country-wide oral health initiative.

Haitian and Cuban doctors help a patient with physical therapy. Hôpital Universitaire de la Paix, Port-au-Prince


A renovated hospital in Mirabalais--part of a cooperative long-term public health investment between Haiti, Cuba, Venezuela and Brazil.

“The challenge is building a working healthcare system for Haiti from scratch, while responding to ongoing emergencies,” said Kathleen Hower, executive director and founder of Global Links, a US nonprofit that has worked with Haiti’s public health system for 20 years.

South-South Health Cooperation

Brazil and Venezuela have made major investments to rebuild the Haitian health system. Brazil has pledged $80 million, including the establishment of a national epidemiologic surveillance network, while Venezuela has committed to building 93 new health facilities—both public health programs in cooperation with the Haitian Ministry of Health and staffed by Haitian, Cuban and Latin American health professionals trained at ELAM. Providing services at no cost to the patient, the new facilities include health centers, community hospitals, physical therapy centers, a prosthetics factory and three medical equipment repair workshops.

The joint MEDICC-Global Links initiative plans more medical aid shipments to public hospitals and clinics in Mombin Crochu, Thomazea, L'Asile, Port Salut, LaPaz, Grande Riviere, Trou Du Nord, Bassin Bleu, Raboteau, Mirebalais, Anse D'Hainault, Aquin, Grand Goave, and Cayes Jacmel.

Help Build Sustainable Healthcare in Haiti

Join us. Help build a public health system in Haiti that provides accessible, quality care. Your donation to MEDICC will be matched, dollar-for-dollar, by The Christopher Reynolds Foundation.