The CIR Policy and Education Initiative (PEI) offered a unique opportunity for CIR alumni to go to Haiti to assist in the critical humanitarian effort.
The 501(c)(3) organization, founded in 2007 on the occasion of CIR’s 50th anniversary, sponsored residents and alumni to volunteer for one week each through Project Medishare, a highly regarded University of Miami program that sends medical professionals to provide healthcare services and training at the Hospital Bernard Mevs in Port-au-Prince.
Once accepted to volunteer by Project Medishare, PEI contributed
- the $500 Medishare requires for roundtrip air travel between Miami and Port-au-Prince and food and lodging while in Haiti, and
- reimbursement of up to $600 to offset the cost of travel to Miami and hotel accommodations.
WHAT IS IT LIKE IN HAITI TODAY?
There is still a tremendous need for medical help!
“What can I say about Haiti? It was tragic and wonderful at the same time.”
- Mark Petrovani, Family Medicine, Bronx-Lebanon Hospital
Since the devastating earthquake in Haiti in January 2010, forty CIR members and alumni have volunteered to deploy to Haiti for a week or more using personal leave time. Their moving stories can be seen on CIR’s Haiti Blog and on YouTube.
The need for medical relief, particularly from doctors, remains great. Three million Haitians (one-third of the country’s population) were directly affected by this devastating disaster. Thousands of families continue to live in tent cities with limited sanitary conditions and medical care. The outbreak of cholera has compounded the tragedy.
To learn more about the CIR Policy and Education Initiative, please visit www.cirpei.org.
