So many of you have asked us to share our needs. You want to know when and how to ship things to us. Well, at the moment we don’t have a shipping address and to be honest we aren’t sure that we are going to get one. It’s hard for us to tell people to ship things when there are local businesses we can support by buying those same items right here in town. Basically…
It costs money for you to purchase things to send.
Then you will also have to pay for the shipping to Florida which could cost you a fortune!
When your package arrives in Haiti the recipient may need to pay a customs fee for the items. Then at the end of the month the recipient gets a bill from the charter company at a rate of $1.50 per pound. On top of that it may take 3-4 weeks to receive your shipment. So we have some pros and cons to weigh out before we take the “shipping address” plunge.
In the meantime there is still a way for you to get specific items into the hands and homes of the people we are here to serve. Why not just send the money instead?
I’m writing this post because in two weeks we will be facilitating a clinic at a church in a rural village. It’s time to stock up on medicine and supplies.
While driving in town it’s not uncommon to see two or three pharmacies on the same block.
I bet you didn't realize these pharmacies were so legit!
Amy and I went to a pharmacy last week to get price quotes for different medications, creams, and first aid supplies that treat the common conditions here in Haiti. We’re pleased to report that the prices are very reasonable. A round of Amoxicillin comes to a whopping 60 cents and two months worth of infant multivitamin syrup is just $1.25.
Or in other words…
$5 covers enough anti-fungal cream for 6 people.
$10 is enough to treat 50 people for worms.
$12 pays for enough antibiotic cream to treat 20 infected wounds.
$15 pays for 10 pregnant women to receive a month’s worth of prenatal vitamins
$18 can treat 6 infants with thrush
$20 buys enough antibiotic to cover 8 skin infections.
$30 can treat 24 children with respiratory, skin, or ear infections
Awesome.
We know that there are certain medical supplies that will be harder to find here. If anyone has access to any of the following items, or any others send us a message!
- Otoscope
- Urinalysis testing strips
- Blood pressure cuff
We will continue to make sure that medical supplies get into the hands of people coming into Haiti.
(Our next visitors come in April.)
While these meds are reasonably priced by our standards, the cost is too often too much for a Haitien family to manage. With just a small donation you can help take the burden off of many sick and suffering. And with a big donation...well the possibilities are endless. :)
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