Promoting Health in Haiti: An International Nursing Collaboration

Before the earthquake that struck on January 12, 2010, Haiti was one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere, such that many of its buildings and public infrastructure were unable to protect hundreds of thousands of people from dying, and its emergency and healthcare systems were ill-equipped to help the injured and homeless. In response to this healthcare and humanitarian crisis, four nurse faculty members from the New York City area, three from Hunter College, came together and formed a nonprofit, nongovernmental organization, called Promoting Health in Haiti (PHH), with the sole purpose of improving the quality of and access to primary healthcare in Haiti by educating advanced practice nurses there. The model was an international collaboration, and the teaching was done both on site and remotely. The impact of these programs on the healthcare in the country is discussed here.