Medical teams international mobilizes medical volunteers to battle spreading cholera
(PORTLAND, Ore., Nov. 6, 2010)—Hurricane Tomas dumped several inches of rain on Haiti. "Haiti is under water," reported Ted Steinhauer, Medical Teams International country director.
The resulting flooding is spreading cholera in areas in northwest Haiti once thought to be under control. Officials reported 550 new cases of cholera.
Medical Teams International began to mobilize medical volunteers today to LaPointe Hospital to help stop the spread of cholera. Roads are impassable between Port-au-Prince and Saint Marc, so medical volunteers and life-saving medicines are being transported by air.
Dr. Joe Markee, from Vancouver, Wash., one of our volunteers and partners, also has a Haiti Foundation of Hope in Terre Blanche. He is assessing the needs in their area. If any of their team members are needed in the cholera-prone areas, they will be transferred to help as well.
Medical Teams International is a Christian global health organization that empowers communities to live full and healthy lives. They work with grassroots organizations, churches and ministries of health to ensure that our projects fit seamlessly into local contexts. Since 1979, Medical Teams International has shipped more than $1.4 billion in antibiotics, surgical kits and lifesaving medicines to care for 35 million people in 100 countries around the world. More than 2,000 volunteers meet the needs of people worldwide each year.
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Contact:
Marlene Minor
503.341.6620 (media cell)
mminor@medicalteams.org
Megan Streng
503.624.1022
mstreng@medicalteams.org
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