Update on IMHO Canada Efforts

Newsletter Issue #2 February 2010

In This Issue

Welcome & Update on Completed Projects

IMHO Canada

Website Launch

Responding to Haitian Crisis

Mannar

Orphanage Project

Amputees Rehabilitation A Top Priority

Welcome & Update on Past Efforts and Current Needs Welcome to the IMHO Canada Newsletter, designed to keep you updated on the efforts of IMHO Canada in serving those in need in Sri Lanka and elsewhere. We intend to send periodic updates to you, our friends and supporters, through e-newsletters like this. Let us take this opportunity to THANK YOU for your support and generosity since our inception. Together, we know we can continue to grow and better serve communities in need for many years to come. With your generous support and compassion, we have been able to draw attention to important health concerns in Sri Lanka during this very trying year and have supported the following efforts:

*Development of the cardiology unit at the Jaffna Teaching Hospital *Vitamin & nutrition programs for undernourished pregnant women in Northeast Sri Lanka *Establishment of a Jaffna medical students support fund With your help, we hope to accomplish MUCH more in 2010 and beyond! The most pressing current needs facing IDPs & resettled IDPs, as well as all those living throughout the Northeast, include:

*Mental Health *Sanitation & Clean Water *Amputee Rehabilitation *Health Infrastructure Development *Microcredit/Livelihoods Support *Much more... We are currently sending out mailers to all of our past donors, supporters, and friends and we hope you will consider supporting our important work by making a donation today! You can donate online through PayPal on our website: www.IMHOCanada.org. You can also donate by check or direct debit, both of read you can read about on our website under the "Donate" section. Thank you for your support!

IMHO Canada Launches www.IMHOCanada.org IMHO Canada proudly unveiled its new official website to keep you updated on all our efforts in serving those in need of health and medical care worldwide! You can view the IMHO Canada

website at www.IMHOCanada.org for more information about who we are, what we do, and how YOU can get involved and support our work.

Heart Treatment Complex at Jaffna Teaching Hospital Opens!

We are very excited to share with you news out of Jaffna, where the Jaffna Teaching Hospital Heart Treatment Complex was officially unveiled in February 2010, thanks to the hard work and commitment of Jaffna cardiologist Dr. Lakshman. IMHO Canada was proud to be a part of a large collaboration between various NGOs, aid agencies, and local doctors in making this project a reality. Through continued networking and helping local doctors to leverage funds from other sources to the maximum extent, this project was able to come to fruition. With this in mind, we are thrilled to announce that on Tuesday morning, February 9th, the Canadian Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Mr. Bruce Levy, officially opened the newly built Heart Treatment Complex at the Jaffna Teaching Hospital (JTH). The new complex was funded and constructed by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) under the UN Development Programme (UNDP), with early support and attention being drawn to this need by Dr. Lakshman and IMHO Canada. This building will soon house a state-of-the-art Cath lab unit, the equipment for which is soon to be donated by the aid wing of the French government. It also sets the foundation for starting a cardiothoracic unit at the Jaffna Teaching Hospital where open heart bypass surgeries may be performed in the future.

Jaffna Government Agent K. Ganesh, who spoke at the event, said that the long standing need for a heart treatment facility is being met with the opening of the new complex. The Director of the Jaffna Teaching Hospital and many others participated in the opening. On behalf of all of us at IMHO Canada, and all of those in Sri Lanka who will benefit from this new cardiac treatment center in the many years to come, we thank you for your support and commitment. What an important milestone this is! IMHO Canada was happy to play a small but important role in this effort.

Responding to the Devastation in Haiti

The already impoverished Caribbean nation of Haiti (officially the poorest country in the western hemisphere) was devastated on January 12, 2010 when a massive 7.0 earthquake struck near the capital of Port-au-Prince, causing buildings to collapse and crumble upon thousands of people.

As the humanitarian crisis in Haiti continues to unfold, the world is responding in remarkable ways. In response to this tragedy of incredible proportions, IMHO Canada quickly contributed $5,000 to the relief effort through Medeceins Sans Frontieres (MSF).

(Photo by Associated Press)

Sponsorship of Orphans at Sivan Arul Illam in Mannar, Sri Lanka Sivan Arul Illam is a registered charitable orphanage, a home for destitute children located on the premises of Thirukketheeswaram Temple in Mannar, which was formed in response to humanitarian needs in the area after the tsunami disaster in 2004. It has been given full consent by the Department of Social Services to undertake full responsibility for some children recently orphaned by the war.

IMHO Canada is seeking donors for 112 orphans at Sivan Arul Illam to be supported for One year at a cost of $40/month per child to improve their nutritional and educational Standards. We have sent $18,000 from the total cost of $54,000.As our policy dictates, after receiving satisfactory field reports the rest of the funds will be dispatched. IMHO Canada is functioning as a facilitator organization for a defined period of time, so that we can ensure help gets to these needy children in a timely manner. If you are interested in supporting an orphan(s) or in spreading the word about this project, please contact the IMHO Programs Coordinator at contact@imhocanada.org and/or the IMHO Treasurer at treasurer@imhocanada.org.

Amputee Rehabilitation Remains a Top Priority

It is our continued concern that the large amputee population in the North and East of Sri Lanka who were physically maimed by the violence earlier this year. And it is being made a top priority for the organization, with many local groups working to assist and rehabilitate these amputees emerging as very capable partners. Mannar General Hospital is happy to report that a visiting team of doctors and technicians from the UK & Colombo successfully fitted over a hundred amputees with artificial limbs on patients at Mannar Base Hospital & at Cheddikulam IDP camps. Two wards at the hospital, donated by the Red Cross, were used as workshops and for clinic facilities. A mobile prosthetic workshop was also rented to treat the patients at the IDP camp. The team received immense support from the surgeon, nurses and chaplain's staff based at the hospital. Prostheses were shipped from the UK, and limbs were fabricated following measurements, and then fitted within days. The patients were immensely grateful! There are many more new amputees & musculo-skeletally injured (estimated as 4,200 by Ministry of Health) from the recent war remaining in the IDP camps as of early November 2009, who are waiting to be treated. There is also a desperate need for mobility aids such as wheelchairs and crutches. At present there is an acute shortage of technicians and therapists in the hospital needed to manage these patients. Currently there are only two physiotherapists and one occupational therapist to treat 30-40 disabled, post war IDP victims in Mannar Hospital. IMHO Canada has undertaken to assist funding to employ 10 physiotherapy and rehabilitation trainees. IMHO Canada intends to do a great deal with this vulnerable group, as they face many challenges. We are actively seeking donors and other partners to assist in this important effort.

Be the

Difference. Save a Life with just

$10/month. DONATE TODAY!

During this crucial time in Sri Lanka and around the world, as we face

monumental challenges in providing better access to quality medical and health

care for those most at-risk populations, we need YOUR HELP now more than

ever. With just $15/month you can make a huge difference in the quality of life for those in need. Please consider making a donation to IMHO Canada today.

You can donate online via PayPal as a one-time or recurring donation

(the amount & frequency of which are up to you).

You can also donate via mail by sending a check made out to "IMHO Canada" to the following address:

IMHO Canada Treasurer Unit #7-5637 Finch Ave. East Toronto, ON M1B 2T9 Canada

IMHO Canada is a registered not-for-profit organization in Canada.

IMHO Canada | Unit #7-5637 Finch Ave. East | Toronto | Ontario | M1B 2T9 | Canada