As you know a brutal earthquake reading 7.0 on the Richter scale struck Haiti on January 12th. The quake struck about ten miles southeast of the nations capital, Port-au-Prince. From what I’ve last heard there are up to 200,000 dead and many more whose whereabouts are unknown. The area is left without electricity or communication. My understanding is many of the hospitals were destroyed. Relief efforts have been underway but with all of the destruction it has been difficult getting those in need the help they need.
Imagine hurting yourself at home. Say you fell and broke your ankle. You would go to the hospital right? Now imagine if there was no hospital and at best you might find a medical tent built on the fly and you have to wait behind hundreds, if not thousands, who have much more serious injuries and medical needs. And then you find out there aren’t enough doctors and even if there were they don’t have enough supplies. Tragic.
I’d like you to consider donating to a favorite charity of ours – Doctors Without Borders, also known as Medecins Sans Frontrieres.
From their About page:
Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international medical humanitarian organization created by doctors and journalists in France in 1971.
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Today, MSF provides aid in nearly 60 countries to people whose survival is threatened by violence, neglect, or catastrophe, primarily due to armed conflict, epidemics, malnutrition, exclusion from health care, or natural disasters. MSF provides independent, impartial assistance to those most in need. MSF reserves the right to speak out to bring attention to neglected crises, to challenge inadequacies or abuse of the aid system, and to advocate for improved medical treatments and protocols.
In 1999, MSF received the Nobel Peace Prize.
MSF’s work is based on the humanitarian principles of medical ethics and impartiality. The organization is committed to bringing quality medical care to people caught in crisis regardless of race, religion, or political affiliation.
These are doctors and support staff that volunteer to go places most of us would never consider and provide medical aid. They are far braver than I am.
One large reason to support them is that they already have staff in Haiti due to relief aid they were already providing the country. They have been working around the clock since the earthquake providing medical aid. Well over 2000 patients have been treated by MSF (Doctors Without Borders) staff.
My wife and I will be donating to MSF and if you are looking for a charity to help Haiti then I think Doctors Without Borders is a great choice.
Click here to donate to Doctors Without Borders.
How We Heard About Doctors Without Borders
We first heard about Doctors Without Borders years ago. I forget where exactly but I remember hearing about doctors who volunteer to bring aid to countries in war-torn areas. I looked into the organization and liked what I read. They had also won the Nobel Prize recently. We followed up by donating to them. A couple of years later we heard about the work of Dr. James Orbinski who had been a president of MSF. He had a book out, An Imperfect Offering
If you buy An Imperfect Offering
The people in Haiti need help. If you would rather donate to a different organization then by all means, so long as we can get these people the support they need. Make sure you pick a charity that is actually getting your donation to people in need. The site Charity Navigator can give you an overview of different charities and tell you how much of your donation is going to help programs and how much is going to administration costs (Doctors Without Borders is a four-star charity, the highest rating).
Also be aware of fraud emails, phone calls, and text messages from fake organizations. Unfortunately these spring up during a crisis. If the message you receive isn’t from a trusted source then go directly to the site in question. Don’t click on anything you don’t trust!
A number of other bloggers have been writing about Haiti relief as well. Check out their sites too and get the word out to donate!
Safe Donations to Victims of the Earthquake in Haiti – Consumerism Commentary
How To Donate To The Haiti Earthquake Relief Effort – Amateur Asset Allocator
Please Donate To Haiti Earthquake Victims
How You Can Help the Relief Efforts in Haiti
How To Donate To The Haiti Earthquake Relief Effort
Haiti Earthquake Relief – How You Can Help! | Million Dollar Journey
Help for Haiti Fund: How you can Help — the centsible life
Haiti Aid – Comment, Blog and Mr Credit Card Will Match
Where will you be donating?
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Doctors Without Borders is a fantastic program. I think doctors are what Haiti needs most right now. Obviously food and water are required, but medical assistance is critical following a disaster of this magnitude.
.-= Leonard´s last blog ..6.7 Million Children Without Health Insurance =-.
Doctors Without Borders are one of the most excellent and wonderful organizations. Peace.
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