September 13, 2010

The town of Mirebalais, 90 minutes north of Port-au-Prince is the site of a 320-room teaching hospital that will be completed in 18 months. Partners in Health, a nongovernmental organization run by Harvard professor Paul Farmer, is overseeing the project that was all ready planned prior to the January 2010 earthquake.

The hospital will be the largest of its kind in Haiti, with six operating rooms, state-of-the-art diagnostic equipment, and an Intensive Care Unit.

Groundbreaking for the Mirebalais Hospital took place on Friday, September 10. FastForward Haiti, a production company with roots in the country and a Green Family Foundation partner, set up the stage, put up the lighting, and handled sound and visuals for the event that took place in Haiti's Central Plateau. Despite the current belief that not enough is being done in Haiti post-earthquake, FastForward Haiti Director Tatiana Magloire says that "Much like the hospital itself, setting up a groundbreaking and important event in a place like that goes toward establishing a standard."

Partner in Health's Paul Farmer and President Bill Clinton are confident the hospital will be built in the 18 months promised. That would make for a great standard.

Read Jacqueline Charles' article in The Miami Herald.