La Romana MissionAnd

Ministries

Reverend Jean Luc Phanord1952 ~2001

Good Samaritan General HospitalVision

The Good Samaritan General Hospital Foundation will be recognized as having the best reputation for compassionately providing high quality medical services to all who seek it in the eastern region of the Dominican Republic

Values• FearGod:WeputGodfirstinallourdecisions.

• Compassion:Withapermanentattitudeofservice,wefocusondiscoveringpeople’sdeepestneeds.

• Honesty:Weworkwithpurity,ourprocessesarecleanandtransparent.

• Confidentiality:Wetreatinformationwiththehighestregardforprivacyandindividuality.

• Courage:Webackupalldecisionswemakeineverycase.Responsibility:Wecarryoutwhatwepromise.

• Prudence:Weproceedcarefullyinallcircumstances,wemakethebestdecisions,maintainourcomposureandkindtreatmentatalltimesandbuildastrong,open,andunderstandingpersonality.

MissionTheGoodSamaritanGeneralHospital:

• IsbasedonChristianPrinciples

• Committedtoprovidehealthcareunderthenormsofrespectandcompassionwiththehigheststandardsofqualityandtechnologyforallwhoseekit.

Mission HistoryThe Maranatha Church was first established in 1929 as the 1st Inglesia Bautista Misionera Haitiana or the First Baptist Haitian Mission Church. It was a church plant of the Haitian Baptist Association to serve the 30,000 Haitians that had been

brought into the region to harvest sugar cane. Their arrival marked the beginning of large scale sugar cane production in this region.

In 1979 Jean Luc Phanord arrived in La Romana. He had recently graduated from the American Baptist seminary in Limbe, Haiti. Within several years he had established over twenty churches in the bateyes. Recognizing the cane harvesters were being cheated out of earnings by dishonest scale operators he taught the workers how to read the cane scale and calculate their wages.

In 1984 the first North American work team arrived in La Romana to replace an old church in Cacata that was barely standing. Members of this team included twenty-two members and was led

by Ivah Heneise, an American Baptist Minister and head of the seminary in Limbe, Haiti.

In 1985 the first medical team led by Rev. Conrad Lowe, pastor of the North Parkersburg Baptist Church in Parkersburg, W. VA, led the first North American Medical clinic. The thirty

member team of doctors, nurses, dentists and lay people spent ten days visiting the bateyes.

The first clinic was held in Cacata, in the church built by the mission team in 1984. According to team records nearly 10,000 people were examined.

During Rev. Lowe’s work in La Romana he and Jean Luc spoke of

the sugar can workers and the incredible lack of health care and education available to these people living in abject slavery. Rev. Lowe commented that medical teams from North America could continue coming from America but their efforts would be ineffective against the demand and lack of on going care.

By 1985 Jean Luc had multiplied his ministry significantly and the church in La Romana was now too small to facilitate a burgeoning membership and the new programs implemented by Jean Luc.

Seeking help to build a larger church he contacted the American Baptist Churches of America.

At this time the North Abington Baptist Church of Abington, MA was planning activities to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the church’s gathering. Looking for a short term

mission project they contacted ABC International Ministries. With the recent request from Jean Luc in hand ABC/IM suggested the North Abington Church contact Jean Luc.

In February 1986 the mission team from North Abington, led by Rod Henrikson, arrived in La Romana to build the new church. While this was the third mission team to arrive it is the team that marks the beginning of work in La Romana that has grown and continues to this day.

As the church was being built Jean Luc

spoke with Rod Henrikson regarding the need for a medical clinic that would care for those in poverty in La Romana but chiefly in the bateyes. He spoke of the substandard care provided these people through the country’s public hospital system.

Understanding the need for a medical facility for the poor Rod agreed to help Jean Luc fulfill his vision of a mission hospital. It took several years before their plans would begin to take shape. The first challenge was acquiring enough land for the building. All the available sites large enough for the project were owned by the Central La Roman Sugar Company.

Early in the negotiation process the company offered a plot on the northern outskirts of the city and set the price at $300,000.00. This sum was much more than the church had or that could be raised in a short amount of time. But this did not deter the efforts and plans moved on.

A architectural rendering of the building we hoped to place on the land was

developed and presented to the executives at Central Romana. The picture was to show the company that we were dedicated to building the hospital and to give them an idea of how much land would be needed. They decided

to go ahead and let us build on the site they had chosen. They also decided to sell the land to us for $1.00 instead of the original asking price but only if we used it build a hospital.

Building began in 1990 with clearing the lot and building a wall to keep out trash and neighborhood animals. All work was done by hand and with only several groups each year proceeded slowly but steadily. In 1997 the first floor opened as a walk in clinic and in it’s first year saw about 9,500 patients.

Between 1997 and 2002 the number of patients increased to over 33,000 annually. During that time the first floor of the hospital had been expanded to include a small Emergency Department, over 20 consultation/examination offices, two surgery rooms, and ten beds for over night care.

From 2002 through 2008 the second floor was added. At this time the number of patients seen annually grew to 48,000. Relocating hospital departments into the second floor provided the space needed to expand hospital services and technology.

In 1997 the only technology available was an antique x-ray machine, which is still in use today, and an ultrasound unit. During the six years of expansion the hospital received many donations of tools and equipment necessary for the doctors to perform healing treatments to the many patients seen. In addition to donations from visiting individuals and visiting groups international groups such as Rotary International helped with significant funding.

Since 2002 the hospital has received very significant donations that have allowed it to provide the technology necessary for quality care of the sick and injured. Since 2002 donations of dialysis equipment, the CT

scanner, outfitting the Emergency Department and equipment our five surgeries have moved Good Sam to the top of the list in quality patient care.

When the hospital opened in 1997 patient care was managed with the help of a basic IT system authored by Moises, the hospital administrator. The system has since been replaced with a professional heath care suite of applications, providing the tools needed to care for the 50,000 patients visiting more than thirty departments staffed by 60 doctors and 150 technical and support personnel.

Construction is underway on the third floor of the hospital. Upon completion Good Sam will be one of the largest health providers outside Santo Domingo with over 45 patient beds. Opening the third floor will free space on the first and second floors allowing the upgrade of surgery, recovery rooms, radiology and the opening of enhanced ICU facilities.

Much of the vision that was cast by Jean Luc Phanord has come into being through the hard work of volunteers and the faithfulness of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The phase that has yet to be completed is still in our sites. Building the third floor is a stepping stone towards it realization.

The final phase of the vision is that the Good Samaritan Hospital become a teaching hospital for the Dominican Republic and other islands that rim the eastern Caribbean. The fourth floor of the hospital is planned as classroom, lab, and surgery theaters to be used by new interns as well as practicing doctors.

Currently the hospital provides services to medical students attending classes in San Pedro de Macoris. It has also conducted many seminars for surgeons throughout the Dominican Republic.

Dedicating the hospital with a teaching mission will complete Jean Luc’s vision. However, during the past twenty years services not considered in 1989 have been discovered any many of them are being addressed today.

The concept of a clinic, or hospital, was to provide health care to the poverty enslaved sugar cane workers and their families. As we became more involved in this mission is became apparent that health care was but one part of the needs these under served families.

Mobile medical clinics, while they were a vital program before the hospital was opened, became more professional and began serving many more bateyes than earlier. With the arrival of Kristy Engle, a medical missionary provided through the American Baptist Church, the number

of communities visited grew from 25 or 30 to over 125. These clinics provided basic health care, focusing on the very young.

Batey Health Promotors is a program established to provide a first line of defense against public health issues. The program started soon after the mobile medical clinics. With the support of the hospital the number of bateyes served has also grown significantly. Currently sixty promotors are supporting over seventy bateyes, and more are needed. Promotors

are trained in public health, medication monitoring, nutrition, and basic first aid.

Good Samaritan HospitalSocial Service Programs

Malnutrition of infants and toddlers is a concern in many of the bateyes. Particularly among the poorer communities or younger families. Where a Promotor is available the warning signs are recognized early and chronic problems are warded off. Where there are no Promotors children are more at risk because bateyes are visited by a mobile clinic once, perhaps twice, annually.

A wider food program to improve the diet of young children has been underway for many years. Several menus and food supplements have been used with successful results. Currently we are using Nazaret, a product of the monastery in Jarabaco, DR.

Safe drinking water is essential to good health. For years we have been providing deworming medication to every child above 2 years old. This medicine is administered as part of the mobile clinics. While an effective treatment, it is only available once or twice a year. To remove the threat of parasites we began to implement bio sand water filters. Use of these simple devices has the ability to provide clean and safe drinking water. Improving water quality has far reaching health implications. Since 2005 Rotary International has partnered with Good Sam to provide these filters.

When visiting the bateyes medical teams are always surprised by the large families. It is not unusual to find 6 or more children in one family. Young women, barely in their mid teens, are starting their own families. While there are social pressures leading to

teen pregnancy, all women are interested in having some control over the size of their families. They realize the more children they have the more difficult it is to provide for them given the meager wages earned by their husbands. We continue to provide family planning education, contraceptives and condoms to offer some means of control. Several times each year education to help women understand other methods available, including tubal ligation.

Education has been, and continues to be, one of the most important areas of our work. Access to education is important to our children to insure a successful career. It is vital to the children in the bateyes because without it they are trapped in a state of abject poverty that

has enslaved their parents. We established four schools in the region and we provide support to over 75 schools throughout the bateyes. Our efforts begin with gaining acceptance by parents that their children will benefit from education and continue through providing uniforms, supplies, meals, and transportation. As students graduate from primary school we provide assistance towards high school and university training.

We can use your help. . .

What can you do to help? There are many ways. First, if you have not joined one of the many short term teams please may plans to come with us in the near future. We can use the skills you have or we can teach you a new one.

• Medical Teams: This may sound difficult and requiring skills you don’t have. If you consider the doctors and nurses we need that’s perhaps true but clinics need many of the skills found in your doctors office. We need people to register patients, weigh them, get their blood pressure and pulse (can train in 15 minutes), but pills in baggies, and take care of the kids while others are working.

• Construction: If you can push a wheelbarrow or shovel material or carry blocks then you have the skill needed to move a building project closer to completion. There are other tasks that require trade skills as well.

• Surgical Teams: There is a great need for all types of hospital level skills. These teams are scheduled individually by the hospital and arriving teams. Patients in your speciality are screened and prepped for your team when they arrive. One of the teams that has been volunteering for many years perform as many as 500 surgeries in a weeks time.

• Evangelism: There are opportunities to visit with those living in the batey and tell them about Jesus and how He wants to help them in their lives. We have hosted teams that spend every day bringing our Lord into the lives those that are living in poverty and despair.

• Fund Raising: This is a very important function as you know. When we first began working 20 years ago an entire week cost what a plane ticket costs today. Other expenses have also increased and today a week’s trip costs an average of $1,200.00 - $1,800.00. It is a point where many people that would like to participate find the cost out of reach. The cost of materials needed for a project represents 25 - 30% of the total needed. Assistance in this area will provide more volunteers the opportunity to participate.

• Used Equipment Donations: Much of the technology available at the hospital has been donated by individuals, doctors retiring and closing their offices, clinics either closing or merging, and hospitals replacing their old technology. If you are aware of any medical equipment becoming available please forward the information.

• Container Shipments: We try to ship at least one 40’ container every year. These containers are filled with used office equipment, computers, hospital equipment, wheel chairs, school supplies, and just about any other useful items to the hospital or schools in La Romana. The cost of shipping a container is about $6,000.00. Locating items for shipment and raising the needed funding is another area where you can help.

The Good Samaritan Mission Council is a 501(c)(3) Public Charity

800 Main StreetSuite 126

Holden, MA 01520

www.laromana.orginfo@laromana.org