GSR’s Soli Salgago Reports on MFH and our Sister Partners in the Dominican Republic
For her recent article in the Global Sisters Report, Soli Salgago visited MFH project sites in Quisqueya and Consuelo in the Dominican Republic. Here is an excerpt from her article which highlights MFH's partnership with the Daughters of Charity (Quisqueya) and the Grey Sisters (Consuelo) to transform the system of maternal and child healthcare for the poorest of the poor in the Dominican Republic:
Medicines for Humanity is a nonprofit dedicated to saving children's lives through proper medical care in impoverished regions around the globe, including Cameroon, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Kenya, Rwanda and Sudan. Though five regions are covered in the Dominican Republic, sisters are integral to the teams that travel to two bateyes: Daughters of Charity in Quisqueya, and the Grey Sisters of Immaculate Conception in Consuelo.
Both teams ride in mobile health clinics to more than 20 communities a month where residents are unable to afford to travel for medical attention, which can cost nearly four times more than the treatment itself. Sometimes a team visits more than one community a day depending on how many patients they need to attend, which can range anywhere from 10 to 70 at a given site.
Each team includes a doctor, at least one nurse, a pharmaceutical assistant, and a health worker who resides in the local community, informing the visiting team on the detailed progress of patients.
"If you want to make an impact on maternal and child health around the world, in truly vulnerable communities, your best hope is the sisters," said Tim Bilodeau, former executive director of Medicines for Humanity and current chairman of the board of directors, based in Rockland, Massachusetts. "They make long-term commitments to work and typically already have the trust of the community. . . . In some ways they have untapped potential to really be a catalyst for improving the child's health in these countries."
Read the rest of Soli Salgago's article by visiting the Global Sisters Report.
