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Dear friends,
We have just ended the fiscal year 2019-2020. A year marked by many events in particular by the Covid-19 which, by the home confinement imposed by the government, has mainly hit schools, universities, airports, churches, restaurants, hotels and further weakened the country's already precarious economy. We thank God he spared us this toll that, according to all predictions, should be catastrophic with a high prevalence and very high mortality rate. It didn't. Haiti, according to World Health Organization, is one of three countries to have managed this epidemic very well. The Ministry of Health epidemiology department has recently published 41,775 suspected cases of whom only 9,958 were confirmed and 236 deaths with the highest incidence in the departments of Artibonite, South and South East. The 11 new infections have been reported in the West (Port-au-Prince).
The year has also been marked by political turmoil and civil society protests against the actions of the government ruling the country without the parliament because the last elections for the renewal of the senate-house and the Congress did not take place. The President rules the country by decree.
We have been struck by a remarkable increase in the number of kidnappings, rapes, and murders where no sector of society particularly in the metropolitan area of Port-au-Prince has been spared.
From an economic point of view, an appreciation of our currency against the US dollars suddenly dropping from 125 to 62 gourdes has severely unbalanced the market and does not seem to help the poorest who live on money transfers from their relatives abroad. In a few days, the income of the majority of the families fell by half while the prices of the products on the market remained barely unchanged. This completely artificial appreciation of the gourde due to a massive injection of US dollars in the market by the government is likely to be only temporary.
This situation of long-standing poverty that persists and even worsens has its repercussions on the social climate. Insecurity is rife in the country. Armed gangs occupy the majority of the slums in the metropolitan area and some places in the remote area of the country sowing mourning throughout the population. The national police are powerless facing the actions of these gangs and seem better able to prevent the population from demonstrating in the streets than to counter the increasingly violent and daring actions of the bandits. General elections to be held in the coming months don't augur well for the country where bandits constitute powerful weapons and tools in the hands of politicians, both government and opposition. Please, pray for God's intervention in favor of the country.
King's Hospital
Despite the situations described above, we achieved significant progress in all areas. The periods of lockout, violence, and home confinement due to Covid-19 enabled us to receive a large number of patients and meet their needs while several other medical institutions were closed. We have seen the hand of God with us. From October 2018 to September 2020, the hospital experienced a fairly continuous upward trend. 2
However, during the last two months, we recorded a slowdown and even a decrease in the number of our activities, and revenues. Is it due to the country's financial situation or the holiday season? It may be too early to conclude. There was a marked increase in the number of patients who could not pay all or part of their bills. Some managed to escape the hospital, and others attack staff to leave without paying their debt.
Community Health Program
We will have the opportunity to resume delivering preventive health services to the families through churches around the hospital. In addition to the Tuesday and Friday Rally Posts held at the hospital, our CPH team will be offering an additional RP every Thursday in churches. This project supported by one of our US partner churches will allow us to
- Deliver vaccines to children under five years old, pregnant women, and childbearing child women
- Promote birth control
- Manage diarrhea and rehydration by oral salt packages to prevent mortality from dehydration
- Educate families about the Covid-19 epidemic and other most prevalent infectious diseases in Haiti. We will have the opportunity to hire a facilitator to mobilize religious and community leaders in the area.
We thank the Lord for your financial donations that have enabled us to maintain our infrastructures, renew our materials and equipment, and continue to serve the vulnerable population of our community. Wear and termites have done their job of destruction for the past eleven years. The wooden swing doors of our two operating rooms were replaced last month, to the delight of our OR staff and our associated surgeons. 3
We hope to begin work soon for the new medical services of the dental clinic, physical therapy, neonatology, and dialysis that our patients need so badly in our area. We will keep you posted on our progress of this ministry development agenda.
Please, pray for peace in Haiti, for safety for our staff, for Junie, and me. Our children and grandchildren are doing well. Philippe married last January and lives in Boston with his wife Marta and their daughter Beatrice who is just three months old.
I pray that the Lord bless you and your family abundantly during this Christmas season and throughout this New Year 2021.
Hubert
December 2020
Nevertheless the dimness shall not be such as was in her vexation, when at the first he lightly afflicted the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, and afterward did more grievously afflict her by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, in Galilee of the nations. The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined. Thou hast multiplied the nation, and not increased the joy: they joy before thee according to the joy in harvest, and as men rejoice when they divide the spoil. For thou hast broken the yoke of his burden, and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his oppressor, as in the day of Midian. For every battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Isaih 9:1-6