On Tuesday, January 12, at 4:59 pm ET, the world was shaken by the news that a 7.0 magnitude earthquake had hit Haiti. Within minutes, Americans responded to the call and began to provide support by way of supplies and manpower for the cause.
One man by the name of Dr. George Paul, who is part of the medical team during American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón race weekends, responded immediately, and was dispatched to Haiti nearly two weeks after the earthquake, departing exactly one day following the conclusion of the IMSA’s inaugural Sebring Winter Test for all its support series.
Now, after the conclusion of the 58th Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring presented by Fresh from Florida, at the same raceway where he received the call, Dr. Paul talks about his experience.
“When I heard of the disaster in Haiti, I started to look for an opportunity to go over there,” Dr. Paul recalled, thanking his co-workers who provided patient coverage which allowed him to be expedited for the mission.
Nearly two weeks after the initial shock, which took the lives of more than 225,000, Dr. Paul flew to the Dominican Republic and took an eight hour bus ride to Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti.
“When we first entered Haiti, I didn’t see the impact, but all of a sudden, when we turned the corner…complete shock.”
ON-SITE MEDICAL CARE
“When I reached Port-au-Prince with our medical team (which included three doctors and four nurses), we all quickly noticed how the Haitians banned together. They built tent cities. The cities housed more than 175,000 people. The women cooked for their neighbors. The men built sturdy housing for their families.”
Inside the tent cities also housed the doctors and medical “office”. For more serious injuries, there was a comfort ship stationed on the coast. On average, about 600-700 patients were seen daily.
“I provided wound care and tended to secondary illnesses. … There was a lot of breathing problems and irritations of the eyes and throat from all the dust that lifted from collapsing concrete. … The supplies we brought lasted only a day and we found ourselves on Day Two calling stateside for more supplies.”
Due to the time it took to receive supplies, Dr. Paul had to improvise in order to reduce the pain and stabilize injuries. Fortunately, similar to Dr. Paul’s responsibilities at track which include tending to the injured or distressed driver or team member following on on-track incident, reacting to these types of situations are familiar and customary in the medical profession.
HELP FOR HAITI
Throughout the two weeks that Dr. Paul provided his time and talents to the cause, the presence and support from the U.S. was monumental.
The mission allowed Dr. Paul to return home with the message and the knowledge that every donation counts and will touch a life in Haiti.
Learn how to support at americanlemans.com.
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