The Catholic Medical Mission Board (CMMB) will open a new, state-of-the-art health center in Côtes-de-Fer in southeast Haiti, which will serve more than 50,000 community members who previously did not have access to quality healthcare. A dedication of the Bishop Joseph M. Sullivan Center for Health will be celebrated in Côtes-de-Fer by CMMB's Board of Directors, donors and partners on Monday, March 20, 2017.

The hospital will provide the facilities for safe deliveries and surgeries, deliver antenatal, postnatal and pediatric care, and offer pharmacy services and a place to receive emergency care. The health center was opened in partnership with Mercy Health, a Catholic healthcare system serving Ohio and Kentucky. Mercy Health was the lead funder for the hospital, providing a $2 million challenge grant for its construction https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-9748-haiti-health-grant-of-$2-million-for-a-health-center-in-cotes-de-fer.html

"We are thrilled to open the Bishop Joseph M. Sullivan Center for Health in Côtes-de-Fer, which will provide critical care services to some of the most marginalized communities in Haiti," said Bruce Wilkinson, President and CEO of CMMB.

The hospital is opening with support from Haiti's Ministry of Public Health and Population (Ministère de la Santé Publique et de la Population), which will provide technical and support staff, and the community of Côtes‐de‐Fer, who donated the land to CMMB on which the hospital now sits. A guesthouse, attached to the hospital, will house volunteers who provide specialty services and trainings to help build the capacity of the local Haitian staff.

"By bringing together Haitian health professionals and modern equipment and health facilities, The Bishop Joseph M. Sullivan Center for Health will make it possible to deliver high quality care in an area where many residents don't have access to treatment," said Dr. Dianne Jean-François, CMMB's Country Director in Haiti. "With active involvement of the community, and an emphasis on training and knowledge sharing, the health center will strengthen the local health system in a long-term and sustainable way."

Over the next 10 years, dental and ophthalmology facilities will be added to the hospital, in addition to a community center and staff housing. The community center will act as a resource for community members and staff to facilitate access to health information, and serve as a training institution for Haitian physicians and nurses.

HL/ HaitiLibre