President Message: Make the AMHE relevant
It will be soon 47 year since AMHE has been in existence. We, Haitian healthcare professionals, should be proud to have such an organization with so much potential. We should all use the venue of AMHE to make an impact in the healthcare system in Haiti, the main vision of the founding members. Individually, we make a difference in people’s life every day. Some of us go on medical missions, support different projects in Haiti. Those great initiatives are commendable and should be encouraged. However, focusing on projects that can have a long term effect in the healthcare system in Haiti will give us a greater return on our investment. That is why I asking you to support the Family Medicine training program at Hôpital Justinien, Cap-Haitien, Haiti.
Two active and dedicated AMHE members, Dr. Michel Dodard and André Vulcain from the University of Miami have used their position in the US to help improve the healthcare system in Haiti by supporting a residency training program in Family Practice in Haiti. So far, they have trained 60 family physicians who have been practicing in different provinces of Haiti. Unfortunately, the program has been losing the support of its main donors and is at risk of closure unless there is some infusion of new funds. This is one thing that AMHE as an organization cannot allow to happen.
This crisis in the Family Residency program in Haiti gives us members of the AMHE the opportunity to show how powerful we can be when we pull our resources together for a noble cause. To that end, I urge you ( who is reading this page) to donate immediately the value of one day income to the AMHE Foundation. If every reader were to participate in this fund drive, we will have enough fund to support several healthcare projects in Haiti and make AMHE more powerful and relevant.
J. Roosevelt Clerisme, M.D.
President