 |
Rubens Pamies, M.D. |
 |
Ayman El-Mohandes, M.B.B.Ch., M.D., M.P.H. |
 |
Magda Peck, Sc.D. |
The meeting, held March 15, brought together more than 60 people from nearly 50 organizations.
It was spearheaded by co-chairs Dr. Pamies, vice chancellor for academic affairs at UNMC, and Louis Sullivan, M.D., president emeritus of Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta and former secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
The meeting was hosted by Garth Graham, M.D., and the HHS Office of Minority Health.
“It was an important first step,” said Dr. Pamies, chairman of the HHS Advisory Committee on Minority Health and a Haiti native. “This was a collaborative, coordinated effort like nothing before. We are striving to come up with manageable, practical solutions that can be delivered in a short period of time.”
The meeting attendees broke into three key subgroups — undergraduate education, post graduate education, and systems/infrastructure building. Each subgroup has since continued to meet about funding and implementation.
The overall goals include:
- Development of new models for collaboration between U.S. institutions and Haiti;
- Developing and updating health sciences curricula to meet the needs of Haiti;
- Using distance/Web-based programs as well as simulation;
- Rebuilding educational facilities;
- Exploring the development of centers of excellence in strategic locations;
- Emphasizing community-based learning and the infusion of public health into medical and nursing curricula;
- Coordination of health care and supply delivery by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID); and
- Exploring the possible use of a cruise ship as an educational facility until the medical facilities are rebuilt.
|
“We want a new beginning,” Dr. El-Mohandes said. “This is not about getting Haiti back to where it was before the earthquake. It’s about taking Haiti to a new frontier.”