The shockingly high death toll in Haiti only further cemented our commitment to injured patients who survived.
Each day was a race against the clock. The team worked non-stop, saving lives, preventing unnecessary amputations and battling against life threatening diseases that thrive in disaster conditions.
Surgical Team Leader Dr. Richard Villar, Orthopaedic Surgeon
Within 48 hours of the disaster, Villar was en route with the Emergency Response Team to assess medical needs, establish Merlin’s surgical field hospital, and operate on complex injuries. He wrote his immediate impressions from the field:
"Just as I had feared, the situation in Haiti is dire, the sheer scale of devastation out here is truly shocking. However there was one day when a child with an amputated foot arrives at the clinic. He beamed a smile with eyes wide and bright despite his ordeal. There was a brief moment when he screamed in pain as I removed the dressing and cleaned his stump. But the pain settled and his smile returned."
Deborah Milner, Emergency Nurse
"We haven’t stopped working since we arrived. From morning to until night, we’re seeing patients." Photo: © Merlin/Jeroen Oerlemans/Panos Pictures
Michelle Miney, Emergency Nurse
Calling Haiti home, Michelle was on her shift at the UNIMET Hospital in Haiti when the quake struck. "I love people and I hate to see them hurt," she says, adding as a nurse she can help her patients make the transition "from helpless to healed." Photo: Merlin/Leah Borromeo
As we go to press, Merlin’s surgical team has carried out over 300 surgeries.
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Find out more about our work in Haiti