Presidential

Martelly Welcomes X-ray Computer Tomography to Haiti

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PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti - In July 2010, Yéle Haiti donated a grant to Project Medishare for Haiti, Inc. in support of the purchase of a 16-slice CT Scanner with its own trailer and generator power source.

The unit arrived at Hospital Bernard Mevs Project Medishare on April 1st to provide the first high resolution scanning available on the island to all patients regardless of their financial resources.

The CT scanner will provide technology that will allow rapid diagnosis and effective treatment to prevent unnecessary deaths from major heart attacks, strokes, major trauma and maternal emergencies. This technology will be integrated into Project Medishare’s training and education program for Haitian health care workers.

The CT can show different types of tissue such as lung, bone, soft tissue and blood vessels. It is particularly useful for the diagnosis of cancers, infectious cardiovascular pathologies, trauma and osteo-articular pathologies. A CT scan is a non-invasive examination and which uses a minimum radiation.

Martelly Welcomes CT Technology

The President of the Republic, in his first week in office, visited Hospital Bernard Mevs, and after a tour of the facilities and greeting health care workers, he welcomed the new technology into the country.

"A scanner for 10 million people, you would say that this is insufficient, but there was not previously. It is therefore of great importance," Le Nouvelliste reported.

"All ten departments of the country should have such a device, because it is the health of the population," continued the President.

Also on hand was the First Lady, Sophia Martelly and hip-hop artist Wyclef Jean, the founder and former CEO of Yéle Haiti , who stepped down from the organization in July 2010 to pursue his presidential bid.

President Martelly also asked "all stakeholders and all those who love Haiti, and that are working in the field of health to continue to provide this type of assistance to the population. We must begin to respect and protect life. All the partners here are people who love life. I say thank you. Long live Haiti! Viva health! Thank you Medishare and all", concluded the President.

A 16 slice scanner is, according to Dr. Bill Crenshaw, a Seattle Washington, USA-based radiologist working at Bernard Mevs, the only one in Haiti in its class. It uses a special x-ray computed technology (CT) to process information and recreate an image into slices of different tissues and organs.

Project Medishare thanks Yele Haiti and Wyclef Jean for their support as well as Metro Signs of Hollywood, FL, USA for the decals.

Photos: Photo 1 , Photo 2 , Photo 3 , Photo 4 by François Louis
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Source: Le Nouvelliste , Project Medishare