The Desperate State Of Haitian Health Care

During my recent trip to Haiti, I stood by with my heart in my throat as I watched a nurse take away oxygen from a premature baby in order to give it to a mother in labor whose unborn child had a faltering heartbeat.
This post was published on the now-closed HuffPost Contributor platform. Contributors control their own work and posted freely to our site. If you need to flag this entry as abusive, send us an email.

Watch CBS News Videos Online
During my recent trip to Haiti, I stood by with my heart in my throat as I watched a nurse take away oxygen from a premature baby in order to give it to a mother in labor whose unborn child had a faltering heartbeat.

It was the only working oxygen machine in a clinic near Port-de-Paix, the poorest section of the country. I have never felt so helpless in my life.

"Is this what I'm going to see today?" I thought. "Two babies dying because there's no access to what would be the most basic equipment in any American hospital?"

The health care system in Haiti is in desperate shape and about to get worse as the rainy season progresses and exacerbates illnesses like malaria, dysentery and lung infections.

I spent five days in Port-au-Prince and Port-de-Paix with CBS producer Nichole Marks trying to get some sense of what's going on with the Haitian health system and what needs to happen to avert further disaster. The segment we produced aired on Saturday's edition of the "CBS Evening News."

Popular in the Community

Close

What's Hot