A QUALITATIVE STUDY OF THE CHALLENGES AND STRATEGIES OF A RURAL HAITIAN HOSPITAL

Objective. To identify the strategies of success and the challenges relative to healthcare delivery in a hospital setting in rural Haiti. Background. As of 2012, ten departmental hospitals served the entire country of Haiti, and of its 700 health facilities approximately half were concentrated in the urban Port-au-Prince area. With almost half the population living outside of urban areas, the need for health care in the rural regions of Haiti is immense. Peredo Community Hospital is a new hospital funded by Haitian Christian Outreach and operated by Haitians in the resource poor and underserved rural countryside of the Southeast Department of Haiti and serving 300,000 people. Methods. In collaboration with Haitian Christian Outreach and the Peredo Community Hospital, surveys, focus groups with physicians, staff, and patients and interviews with leadership were collected. Results. The hospital faces challenges in a lack of resources, sociocultural barriers, and in the logistics of service delivery. Leaders employ strategies of capacity building, skilled labor training, ensured access to water and education, 64 and strong communication with community elders. Conclusion. This unique setting has the potential to serve as a learning opportunity for future hospitals in similar settings. Possible future strategies may include Doctors United for Haiti’s health sponsorship program, incentives for skilled workers and expansion of the community health worker program. The presence of this hospital alone has created an atmosphere of great potential for this region of Haiti. Grants. No grants