1. International Surgical Partnerships in the Years after the 2010 Haiti Earthquake
Hospital Bernard Mevs
MH Derenoncourt BS1,2, R Carré1, A Condé-Green3 MD, A Rodnez1,2, ZC Sifri MD3, GA Baltazar, DO3,4
1Hospital Bernard Mevs, 2Université Notre Dame d’Haiti, 3Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, 4Saint Barnabas Hospital
Introduction
The 2010 Haiti earthquake severely strained local healthcare infrastructures. In the wake of this healthcare crisis, international organizations provided volunteer support. Studies demonstrate that this support improved short-term recovery; however, it is unclear how long-term surgical capacity has changed and what role volunteer surgical relief efforts have played. Our goal was to investigate the role of international surgical volunteers in the increase of surgical capacity following the 2010 Haiti earthquake.
Results
Overall number of monthly operations increased (Figure 1). The percentage of orthopedic operations declined while the percentage of other subspecialty operations increased (p=0.0003). The percentage of operations performed by international volunteer surgeons did not change (p=0.51); however, the percentage of operations staffed by volunteer anesthesiologists declined (p=0.058) (Figure 2). The percentage of operations performed by matching specialty- and subspecialty-trained international volunteers has not changed (p=0.54).
FIGURE 2. The percentage of operations staffed by international volunteer surgeons had not changed over time. The percentage by volunteer anesthesiologists has decreased.
Methods
We retrospectively analyzed the medical records of 3,208 patients undergoing surgery at a general, trauma and critical care hospital in Port-au-Prince from June 2010-December This hospital partners with an international relief organization for supplies, volunteers and educational opportunities. We collected data on patient demographics and types of operations, surgeons and anesthesiologists (e.g. local healthcare providers vs. international volunteers). We categorized operations and surgeons by surgical subspecialty then performed analysis of variance (ANOVA) to detect changes over time.
Conclusions
Local and overall surgical capacity after the 2010 Haiti earthquake changed gradually over years. Partnerships with international organizations which provide volunteer surgeons, particularly subspecialty-trained surgeons, consistently bolster local healthcare infrastructure and enhance surgical capacity. Increased focus and resource-allocation for long-term surgical relief efforts are strongly recommended after a large and devastating natural disaster.
FIGURE 1. Local and overall surgical capacity significantly increased over time (r2=0.52, p=0.0003).