UDH_HC: A crusade to educate and empower Haiti
My passion for community engagement brought me to UDH Health Coach led by Dr. Marie-Louise Jean-Baptiste and Mr. Jean Alix Simeon, two years ago.
UDH Health Coach is a unique grassroots effort to uplift Haitian communities through community engagement, providing peer to peer education , bridging healthcare disparities , and equipping medical students and healthcare providers with the skills and tools to provide the best care. My engagement with UDH has been the most enriching experience , especially during the pandemic , giving me the opportunity to be a steward for the community , learn the process of outreach , collaborate and be a team player , and to be part of effective change and rebuilding through education.
The Origins
The massive earthquake in Haiti in 2010 left the country struggling – not only challenged by the destruction of infrastructure, resources and hospitals , but also by the loss of trained personnel.
Dr. Jean-Baptiste, a physician at Cambridge Health Alliance , associated with Harvard , who is originally from Haiti , and Mr Simeon , both passionate about working with the underserved populations, wanted to help in rebuilding a country that had lost years of progress during the earthquake.
They decided to help out with the skill set they had academics.
They started by inviting students from Haiti to spend time in the U.S. (Massachusetts). They began by hosting college students, giving them exposure to the education system here in the U.S., providing enrichment, so they could go back to Haiti and incorporate some of those experiences and skills back home.
They expanded this program to invite Medical students and nurses to do rotations in the U.S. , sponsoring and hosting them. The hope was to expand their horizons , provide new skills and tools which they could use to train other peers in Haiti, thus improving the standard of education in a healing community.
Impact of the covid 19 pandemic
Covid affected underserved populations disproportionately. This was more so for Haiti, which was slowly trying to restructure. UDH quickly realized the public health challenges in Haiti including lack of awareness , education and extreme vaccine hesitancy. UDH quickly realigned their goals and expanded their program online , involving medical schools from Haiti , physicians and community leaders and connecting them to healthcare providers in the U.S.
Current program
“Our goal is to make Haitian medical students more well- rounded and competent internationally , empowered with the latest knowledge and resources that students here have “ says Dr. Jean-Baptiste.
The group meets weekly, following an evidence-based curriculum , under the guidance of physicians in the U.S. and Haiti , to provide academic and clinical training to Haitian medical students.
His topics range from history taking , examination to pathology , writing notes and management.
The comprehensive program is implemented simultaneously in English and French, and is meant to provide academic rigor and professionalism to students.
The advisors have a structured approach , identifying gaps in knowledge, sharing resources, breaking down topics to build comprehensive projects, and allowing students to present what they have learned.
Data is gathered before and after each session , identifying gaps and then testing for acquired knowledge afterwards.
“We are trying to help students think differently, “ says Mr. Simeon. The program is geared to provide 360 degrees of medical teaching , incorporating real life clinical skills.
My own experience as a high school student has been fantastic. Not only do I gain a new skill every time , learning about history, taking my patient encounters, physical exam and formulating a plan , but also ,as a premed student , I gain an invaluable opportunity to develop my professional identity.
The program has empowered me with the motivation to learn , the enthusiasm to absorb, the skills to navigate the curriculum and the education to implement in my community efforts.
I am truly fortunate to be a part of this unique program that is not only uplifting the Haitian community , but giving us an invaluable opportunity to be part of a rebuilding effort and to develop our professional identity
