With only a week and a half to go until we arrive in Port au Prince, the preparations for our trip are moving into high gear. Our group, consisting of 8 nurses and 4 physicians from Children's Hospital Boston, will be based at Bernard Mevs hospital, which is being run by Project Medishare and staffed by both Haitian and American nurses and physicians.

While there, we will work in the pediatric inpatient and outpatient units at Bernard Mevs, as well as provide teaching to Haitian pediatric health care professionals there and at the General Hospital (HUEH).

Beyond the general preparations, we are also reaching out to school groups and others in the community, involving them in collecting supplies and donations for Project Medishare, and reminding them of how tenuous the situation remains for the people of Haiti. Unfortunately, in many ways, it is no better than it was in the immediate aftermath of the devastating earthquake which struck over 9 months ago and which killed 300,000 and left more than 1,300,000 homeless.

The news of the cholera outbreak this past week that has sickened thousands and killed at least 259 is a stark reminder of this. So far, most of the cases have been concentrated in St. Marc, approximately 60 miles north of Port au Prince. While 5 cases have been identified in Port au Prince, it is thought that those sickened by it had contracted it elsewhere. However, should it indeed spread to the crowded and unsanitary tent cities in which the displaced persons live, as many fear is inevitable, the results could be catastrophic.