ARTICLE - NEW PHYSICAL REHAB FACILITY

PHYSICAL REHAB FACILITY IN HAITI CHANGES LIVES
(ReliefWeb) - By Jason Friesen - Source: Project HOPE

With the grand opening set for March 11, Project HOPE staff and volunteers have been busy putting the final touches on the rehabilitation facilities. Inspired by art from local artists, the rehab facilities were named "Change Lavi Diquini", which means Changing Lives in Creole.

However, Project HOPE and their partner organizations Christian Blind Mission and Prosthetika, haven't had to wait for the new rehab facilities to start changing lives. Over 50 local Haitians have already received new prosthetic limbs and a small crowd sits outside the temporary facilities everyday waiting to receive physical and occupation therapy – a medical service which had been non-existent in the Diquini community less than a year earlier.

With the new facilities, disabled Haitians will be able to receive top-notch rehabilitative services, as brand new equipment is being brought in based on the same guidelines that rehab clinics in North America use. But what makes this clinic unique is the fact that all of the services will be provided by newly-trained physical therapy technicians, as strengthening the capacity of local health professionals is a central part of the entire project.

The grand opening ceremony on March 11th will be quite an event, as Project HOPE and its partner organizations have booked the Haitian Secretary for the Inclusion of Disabled Persons as the keynote speaker, and have also invited some local disabled musicians to perform. And in order to guarantee that as many disabled persons as possible can take part in the rehab's services, Christian Blind Mission and Project HOPE are working with their newly hired Community Outreach Workers to help spread the word in the surrounding communities about the new facilities and the free physical rehabilitation care that we're offering.