By Devra Krassner, ND
I had the good fortune to join three other homeopaths from HWB on a trip to Port-au-Prince, Haiti for a week in January,2018. I travelled with Mainers Wendy Pollock, D.C. and Lauren Fox, NP (Clinical Director of HWB) as well as Marina Braun, a homeopath from NYC.
The purpose of the trip was two-fold. Firstly, we were able to treat Haitians at a local school as well as at the office of a Haitian physician. This was of course very rewarding. Most exciting, however, was that we participated in a four -part training of Haitian health providers in homeopathy, so that they in turn can bring homeopathy to their own clinics located throughout Haiti.
This was the third session out of four in a homeopathic curriculum designed to rapidly teach health providers the basics of homeopathy. The students included physicians, nurses, and one social worker, and their graduation will be held this spring. I was able to help teach as well as supervise the students taking cases at the clinic. I was amazed at how quickly they were able to prescribe effective remedies and to master the concepts underlying the practice of homeopathy.
Haitians continue to face multiple challenges to their physical and emotional health and well-being. Most Haitians have no drinkable water, and we drank only bottled water. The clinic where we saw patients had one toilet we flushed by pouring water from a bucket into the toilet. We saw people with multiple physical problems including ringworm, H. pylori, anemia, cholera and typhoid. We also saw so many people still traumatized by the devastating earthquake of 2010 resulting in the loss of loved ones, homes and community.
Despite these hardships, the Haitians who we met were kind, generous, resilient and joyous, making do with so much less than we have here. Americans take for granted so many things, like drinkable water, hot showers, gainful employment and safe housing.
Homeopathy is effective, inexpensive and safe, making it a perfect therapy for countries like Haiti where people often have no access to antibiotics and other forms of treatment.
I am grateful to have had the opportunity to both teach and learn from the Haitians. Please visit the website for Homeopaths Without Borders to learn more about the organization and see how you can help!