Thousands of Volunteers Propel New Hospital in #Mirebalais, #Haiti @BostonGlobe @PIH

Photo by Joyce Rathe, Boston Globe of International Medical Equipment Collaborative in North Andover, where volunteers packed 63 shipping containers for the new hospital in Mirebalais, Haiti.

Well over 1,000 volunteers from Greater Boston have lent a hand to build and equip the new National Teaching Hospital  in Mirebalais, Haiti, as reported by G. Jeffrey MacDonald  in yesterday’s Boston Globe North.  From shipping construction materials and medical supplies, to shaping and installing millwork and ventilation systems, to laying tile,  to wiring the first solar powered hospital in the Western Hemisphere, thousands of volunteers from trade unions and construction shops  have offered their time and talents to this historic undertaking. 

Working side by side and hand to hand with hundreds of Haitians, American volunteers have experienced the eagerness of their Haitian co-workers to learn advanced construction skills and to participate in a meaningful way in the reconstruction of their country’s critical infrastructure. 

For the full article see  http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/2012/08/25/groundswell-local-support-foundation-new-hospital-haiti/kHKMC8P8b5PUE6StAQo9mM/story.html

For a list of in-kind donors to the National Teaching Hospital of Haiti, including scores from the US construction industry, see http://www.pih.org/mirebalais.  The project is overseen by Partners in Health, the global health care organization headquartered in Boston and committed to health care as a human right for all.

Jim Ansara is Partners in Health’s volunteer Director of Construction for the hospital.  The Ansara Family Fund is a proud supporter of Partners in Health, which was founded in Haiti 25 years ago and now provides health care for the poor in ten countries.