Team of doctors and nurses to bring medical care to Haiti

FIVE medical personnel attached to the Mid-Western Regional Hospital in Limerick, will be part of an Irish team of doctors and nurses who will travel to Haiti to help people injured in the January 12 earthquake which devastated the country.

The group will leave on April 10.

Team leader Finbarr Condon, a consultant orthopaedic surgeon at the Mid-Western Regional Hospital, said: “In the aftermath of the earthquake, the Irish Institute of Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgeons have been involved in bringing medical teams, as volunteers, on a relay basis to Haiti.

“The first team travelled in early February and teams from Ireland have been rotating with other international multidisciplinary medical teams from the USA since then.

“Our group of 10 from Limerick and Dublin, will be travelling to the PIH (Partners in Health) Hospital in Cange, Haiti.

“We are composed of orthopaedic and plastic surgeons, anaesthetists and nurses. Our goal is to continue with work instituted by previous groups and to continue to work in ever-evolving clinical scenarios.

“The Haitians have suffered enormous injury, disability and deformities, therefore, the work we will be carrying out will largely be orthopaedic surgery and plastic surgery.”

Those travelling from Limerick are Dr Condon, consultant anaesthetist Dr Catherine Motherway, Dr Emer Curran, consultant anaesthetist, theatre nurses Kate O’Brien and Renee O’Dwyer, and orthopaedic surgeon Paddy Kenny.

Dr Condon said: “We would appreciate any contributions towards this worthy project from our consultant colleagues in the mid-western region. Through the IITOS, a registered charity any contributions made can be tax deductible.”