Health Care Services for Haitians by Haitians

 

Miss Julienne Picot remembers hearing the story of a child who fell ill in the night, and the parent who struggled to get quality medical care at a public hospital. That parent told the hospital workers that if they worked like Kay Lasante, they would have “the blessings of God.”

 

“That point touched me and gave me more strength to work harder and to give better service at Kay Lasante,” says Miss Picot, who now is giving such better service as a Registered Nurse.

 

Miss Picot is one of several nurses at Kay Lasante who have benefitted from training thanks to the generosity of donors.

 

In Haiti, the role of helping the helpers is vital. In recent years, donors of Kay Lasante have filled that vital role by contributing to the education of Registered Nurses, to give the people of Haiti the quality healthcare they deserve. 

 

Today, says Miss Picot, that assistance has strengthened Kay Lasante as a “place of hope” for the community.

 

“I want to say thank you to the board members and all the donors for what you are doing to help these Haitian people who really need medical care,” Miss Picot says. 

 

Her friend and colleague, Miss Sintile Menard, started as an assistant at Kay Lasante. She admits her knowledge in the medical field was limited. But she soon had the opportunity to attend nursing school.

 

“I knew why I went to school, and I obtained much knowledge to serve patients at Kay Lasante,” says Miss Menard, now a licensed nurse. “They are happy for my good service, and I am proud of that.”

 

“Having a license in Haiti is not an easy thing. When I passed my government exam, I felt I was really qualified to be a nurse…It’s an open door for me to get advanced studies to give better medical service in Haiti.”

 

Miss Menard recalls working at a hospital and encountering a man in deep pain who was in need of a urologist. Knowing what to do from her work at Kay Lasante, she asked the staff for the proper supplies and was able to treat the man and relieve his pain. 

 

“He thanked me a million times,” she recalls. “Saying, ‘I felt like I was going to die and you just give me life again.’”

 

What’s important in the area of Caradeux, where Kay Lasante is situated, Miss Menard says, is that patients know they will receive not just quality medical care, but also respect. 

 

“Some people come not because they don’t have money but for the quality of the welcome at Kay Lasante,” she says. 

 

Still, the clinic is indispensable especially for those who cannot pay, she says. 

 

“Sometimes I imagine if Kay Lasante didn’t exist anymore, how many people would stay at their place, sick and dying from diabetes, hypertension and more because they didn’t have money to go to another hospital?” she says. “I really don’t have a word to explain what Kay Lasante represents in the community.”

 

Like her fellow nurse Miss Picot, Miss Menard is filled with gratitude that Kay Lasante helping the people of Haiti because of the donations and investment in her education.

 

“You invest your money and your time in Kay Lasante and in me to start as a  Health Agent to a Nurse with a license,” she says. “I promise to use my knowledge to serve the patients at KLS every day in a better condition.”