The Haitian Orphanage Medical Support (HOMS) project provides consistent medical care, health education, and supplies to orphans in Haitian orphanages. The program's primary purpose is to provide regular medical care and to monitor the orphanages to ensure they provide a sufficient level of care for all the children.
The HOMS team consists of a nurse and two team members who faithfully visit each Haitian-run orphanage on rotation. The team is directed by Debi Lammert, APRN-CNS, and Haiti-native Esaie Jean Louis, who oversees daily operations.
“Most [orphanages in Haiti],” Debi says, “are medium to small orphanages run by people who felt called to do this but have very little financial or material support.
“The goal of the [HOMS] project,” she continues, “is to work directly with the orphanage directors…and help them provide preventative and basic healthcare as well as dealing with medical issues that come up.”
In addition to providing basic medical care for maladies such as vitamin deficiency, skin infections, malaria, and other ailments common in the impoverished nation, a secondary but important purpose of HOMS is to collect health data on the children living in the orphanages to ensure they are growing and thriving. The HOMS team takes weight and height measurements and are able to give feedback to both the orphanage and to Haitian child welfare authorities on the quality of care the children are receiving.
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