The medical mission team to Haiti has returned to American soil safely and following a successful mission.
The team left Port-au-Prince on Thursday, arriving at Fort Pierce, FL at 3 p.m. They spent the night in Florida on Thursday and are making their way back to Indianapolis today by van.
Wishard paramedic and team leader Mike Thralls relayed the success of the trip: the team transported 2.5 tons of medical supplies to Haiti, delivering them intact and returning the crew to America safely. While in Port-au-Prince, the team helped convert a school into a clinic/hospital, and every day there the team was able to provide care for victims of one of the most catastrophic natural events in the history of this developing nation.
In its time in Haiti, the team provided critical care to between 800 and 1,000 patients, including three critical burn patients they were able to airlift out to the Dominican Republic. Only one amputation had to be performed, while many more wounds were treated to prevent or abate infection and many others required cleaning.
As the days progressed, the team not only delivered care for the 2,000 people living in tents behind their facility but also to people walking from five to ten miles away to seek general medical care. Many required care beyond the capacity of the team's limited equipment, an indication of the great need still present in the Western Hemisphere's poorest country now and for the foreseeable future.
The team is driving through a winter storm to get back to Indiana today, but that is a small obstacle compared to the challenges they witnessed over the past several days.
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