Univers Medical Center Opens with Haitian Staff in July 2008

After a week of staff orientation, the 24 recently-hired Haitian professional and support staff opened the doors of the clinic to patients on July 8, 2008. The flow of patients increased over the next couple weeks, and the staff began to function beautifully and independently. The clinic started seeing patients 30 to 40 hours per week. Read more....

4-MINUTE MEDICAL CLINIC MOVIE - CLICK HERE

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First Major Surgeries Performed in Univers Medical Center

Tuesday, May 20, 2008 ---reported by Pam Mann in Ouanaminthe

Yesterday was a red-letter day in the history of Univers Medical Center: our first major abdominal surgery – a partial hysterectomy – performed in our newly air-conditioned operating room.  People from many states connected through COCINA to Hugues worked together to make this a reality.  As the surgical team was traveling here, the surgery A/C unit was being installed by David Zeller who made a special trip from Wisconsin to do the installation and startup.

There are 33 on this week’s mission team, hailing from eight states but mostly from Tennessee.  Lee from Colorado is teaching people to use low-cost home water filters. Twenty-seven mission team members are providing dental, optical, surgical, and general medical services at UMC.

Many, many residents were disappointed not to receive medical appointments.  But those same people smiled very widely on hearing that, God willing, the clinic will open permanently in July.  Dave and I have finally come to terms with the fact that it’s our job to grieve with all those who do not receive access to medical care.  Word is spreading about UMC, but medical teams can serve only a limited number of people.  Those conversations with the disappointed generally follow a pattern:  1. annoyance, 2. restating the medical need (some heart-breaking), 3.  an understanding of limited resources, with an appreciation of our desire to help, 4.  an acknowledgement that God knows all things and will not forget the poor.

It’s been a week for learning.  This team has many first-timers with a positive congenial group spirit.  The surgical team is averaging about 9 operations a day.  Suddenly we have dirty linen in quantities previously unknown.  In order to do as many surgeries as possible, we have to send patients home who do not have strength to walk – creating the need for transportation.  The anesthesiologist needs oxygen.  Hugues is figuring out where oxygen tanks and regulators can be procured.

The computerized patient record system set up by Dr. Jay Nielsen is being operated by both Haitian and American staff.  Once the nursing staff records vitals, patients are sent to their respective area for treatment.

We’re into the hot, humid season, but ceiling fans installed by January and February mission teams keep folks relatively comfortable.  When people who pray serve even for a limited time in a place, they must leave a lingering spiritual presence – because, both in the school and the medical center, I “see” the people who have worked here. Their past presence continues presently.

C.O.C.I.N.A. Mailing Address for Donations Moved to Columbus, Ohio

In May, 2008 the official U.S. address for receiving COCINA contributions was changed to:

C.O.C.I.N.A.
P.O. Box 12695
Columbus, OH 43212

This address change was decided upon by the Board because the newly elected V.P. of Finance (Bob Gillette) and Assistant Treasurer who receives and deposits contributions (Carol Davis) live in Columbus. Also, the COCINA bank accounts are being moved to a bank in Columbus.

Institution Univers Enjoying New Pickup Truck And School Bus
Pickup Truck Purchased With Grant From Harold C. Schott Foundation,
And School Bus Provided By Church Communities In Pennsylvania

September, 2007, Institution Univers received a brand new Toyota Tundra pickup truck and a school bus that was retired from a school fleet in eastern Pennsylvania. The school’s old Ford F-350 pickup truck was in very worn-out condition and needed around $10,000 worth of repairs; so it had to be parked indefinitely even before the Toyota truck arrived. Funds for purchasing the Toyota truck came from a grant to COCINA that was awarded in December 2006 by the Ohio-based HCS Foundation. The pickup truck was purchased in Wisconsin and driven to Miami for delivery by boat to Cap Haitien, Haiti.

The school bus was donated by Kleinfelter Chevrolet in Jonestown, Pennsylvania. Owner Lynn Kleinfelter responded to a plea from Institution Univers Director Hugues Bastien about the deteriorating condition of the two existing school buses at I.U. and the need for a third bus that would be in excellent condition. People at St. Peter Lutheran Church in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, and in the local Lutheran Synod worked for months to raise money to ship the bus to Haiti and to fill it with needed school supplies. Former COCINA Board member Rex Carmichael was involved locally in managing the shipping of this donated bus. He and the local Christian community had also been involved in shipping the two older donated school buses to Ouanaminthe. The school bus was also driven to Miami and put on the same ship as the pickup truck for their ocean voyage to Cap Haitien, Haiti (about a 2-hour drive from Ouanaminthe.

Vocation Education…An Expanding Frontier For Univers

By Hugues Bastien and Dave Mann

May 2008

Institution Univers began 14 years ago with a big visionto develop Christian leaders to reshape every sector of Haitian society. We have made great strides toward that goal, but we have certainly not yet arrived. When our first class graduates from high school in June 2009, God willing, we will have reached a worthwhile measurable goal. But we still have much left to accomplish. The Vocation Education portion of the vision has been moving forward in the form of UTEC, Univers Technique et Commercial, our adult training program that meets in the late afternoons and early evenings. Currently, we offer courses in computer skills, business, accounting, and English. But we have plans to increase the programmatic offering significantly. We are looking to develop a nursing and nurse-aid training program, which will supply qualified nurses for our own Univers Centre Mdical as well as other hospitals and clinics in the region. We also desire to develop a sewing program for men and women, as well as construction skills, such as electricity, plumbing, masonry, and carpentry. All of these programs will be designed specifically to provide the participants with marketable skills to provide income for their families and to provide valuable skills for the community. We have recently received building plans from an architect for a vo-ed campus which consists of up to eight different buildings. These are planned to be constructed in a convenient semi-circle on the newly acquired property north of the current College Univers facilities. As the funds materialize to build one building at a time and the personnel are hired, we will be able to move from the cur- rent beginning stages of adult training to a fully functioning, multi-faceted system of curricula that will make a significant difference in the community and the northeast region of Haiti. The buildings will be 60 ft. by 60 ft. and two stories, costing about $100,000. The vision is still before us! Much is needed to bring the first building and the next vo-ed programs into being. Significant financial support will be needed along with securing qualified staff and attracting interested capable adult students.

Institution Univers Awarded Grant to Expand Vocational Education Programs

Hughes Bastien, Director of Institution Univers, announced that Levi Strauss is awarding a $25,000 grant for one year to help the school expand vocational education offerings for the community of Ouanaminthe. Levi Strauss operates a jeans factory in Ouanaminthe that employs several hundred Haitians, so they have an interest in community improvement and education.

This one-year grant will make it possible for Institution Univers to develop, start classes and get government certification for a French language program. This initial funding will also help develop a sewing program and to expand course offerings in English and computer operations. The Levi Strauss representative would like to have Institution Univers develop a program to train adults to become auto mechanics, but Hugues advised them that additional funding will be needed for such an expensive vocational education course. Second year funding will be sought from Levi Strauss for continuing to develop and expand vocational education courses.

Plan Haiti Funds Construction of New Kindergarten Building for Institution Univers