January 2013 Newsletter
Greetings to the friends and sponsors of Project Hearts! The first
month of this New Year we had a very exciting opportunity to partner
with several organizations interested in the medical assessment and
treatment of families in our municipality of Baitoa.
A
group of eleven Nurse Practioners from Massachusetts General Hospital
Institute of Health Professionals arrived in our community on January 2nd,
2013. They were accompanied by their professor, a videographer and a
doctor from Good Samaritan Hospital in Santo Domingo. Dr. Mark
McDonald, Director of Christian Medical Mission, led and hosted the
group in San Jose Adentro for one week. Ruben Ottenwalder, Director of
Project Hearts, assisted Mark in facilitation of poly-clinic contacts,
community contacts and provision of drivers and interpreters.
On January 3rd
a Health Fair was held attended by approximately 250 people. The
purpose of the fair was to acquaint the community with the services to
be provided by the team. Educational sessions were held in the areas of
personal hygiene, CPR, blood pressure checks, first aid, family
planning, HIV and the prevention and treatment of common illnesses.
The
team traveled throughout four different communities (house to house)
documenting family health needs and providing assessment, referral and
treatment as needed. Each day, some team members volunteered in the
poly-clinics seeing patients and learning about the local resources and
protocols.
A
total of 350 individuals were surveyed from 78 different households.
The survey results give us a more accurate picture of critical needs of
our community. Although poverty was pervasive in all households it was
often not stated in those words but rather as a given compared to others
in the community. One woman however was very frank in her answer to
our question about what the greatest need was for her family. She
simply stated, “Look around”. Some of our findings include:
72% Unemployment
38% Illiteracy
67% No access to filtered/clean drinking water
25% Reported diseases or illnesses (High blood pressure, respiratory illnesses and diabetes were the most prevalent)
We hope to broaden this survey and service throughout the year to improve the lives of these families.
In the US, tax-deductible donations may be made to us (just mention Project Hearts) through www.gracecares.com
with Google Check-out or by sending checks made out to GRACE Cares, 773
Guilford St, Brattleboro, VT 05301. Checks may also be sent directly
to KUMC at P.O. Box 189, Kemblesville, PA 19347.
We
need volunteers here in the Dominican Republic or from the comfort of
your own living room. Please let me know if you are interested in
lending a helping hand.
Gratefully Yours,
Bienvenido Ottenwalder, Executive Director and Founder
1-809-520-2254
