Immediately after the earthquake, Direct Relief initiated contact with in-country healthcare partners to identify their medical resources needs and worked with the Chilean Ministry of Health to identify and fill shortages of specific medications. Throughout the year following the earthquake, Direct Relief also continued to distribute medicines to help replenish the Ministry’s depleted stocks.

Direct Relief developed a strong partnership with FEDES (Fundación Educativa de Desarrollo Economico y Social), a Chilean nongovernmental organization which facilitated the efficient distribution of donated materials to where they were needed. FedEx contributed to the success of the emergency response efforts by airlifting critically needed supplies from Direct Relief to FEDES free of charge.

Aid delivery to health facilities in the most affected areas was then initiated in coordination with national and local authorities, hospital directors, and primary healthcare networks. Direct Relief sent a total of 57 pallets of medical materials in response to the earthquake. Direct Relief also provided FEDES with a $10,000 cash grant to cover the organization’s expenses in distributing aid to hard-to-reach healthcare facilities in need.
A grant of $85,290 to FEDES funded construction and repair of nine damaged health centers in Santiago. Before the earthquake, these facilities served 80,000 people monthly. Reconstruction is complete at four centers and is expected to be completed at all nine by March 31, 2011. At multiple clinics, staff and community members have volunteered their time to help in reconstruction and cleanup.

FEDES also identified a critical need for medical equipment at health centers in Lo Espejo, one of the poorest districts in Santiago. FEDES delivered medical supplies and equipment sent by Direct Relief to health centers in Lo Espejo and used Direct Relief’s cash grant to purchase critical items that were not donated. The cash grant was also used for clinic reconstruction and to fix a desperately needed ambulance that was damaged in the earthquake.

Direct Relief is continuing to support partners in Chile and is committed to infusing additional medical resources into areas most affected by the quake.

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The organization is contacting partners it collaborated with during the response to last year’s devastating earthquake and tsunami, including Fundación Educativa de Desarrollo Economico y Social (FEDES). A medical and social services aid group based in Santiago, FEDES provided medical aid for people injured in an displaced by last year’s earthquake and tsunami during outreach trips to the affected areas.

Based on partners’ needs to treat patients affected by today’s earthquake, Direct Relief stands ready to provide medical material aid as partners request, and will carefully monitor the situation as events unfold.

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Direct Relief has facilitated a large shipment of more than 48,000 bottles of nutritional products, including oral rehydration solutions and adult nutritionals, donated by Abbott affiliates in Chile and Ecuador for distribution to a hospitals, clinics, and shelters in the hardest-hit areas. Valued at more than $165,000 (wholesale), these requested materials join the more than $112,000 (wholesale) of products and medicines previously sent to Chile for earthquake relief.

Fundación Educativa de Desarrollo Economico y Social (FEDES), our partner in Chile, is distributing the needed aid during its ongoing outreach trips to temporary camps and health facilities caring for people affected by the earthquake and tsunami. FEDES reports that several fishing villages, including San Pedro, La Pesca, Iloca, Duau, and Lincanten, have been heavily damaged or completely destroyed. Despite their losses, residents are expressing gratitude for the help they’re receiving. In the Maule region, FEDES says that several of the larger public hospitals are “uninhabitable,” and the Chilean army has established temporary field hospitals where patients continue to receive care.

Direct Relief staff has been in contact with the head pharmacist at the Chilean Ministry of Health (MOH) in Santiago as well as regional MOH offices to identify the most-needed medicines. Covidien, GlaxoSmithKline, and Johnson & Johnson have also offered donations of needed products from their affiliates in Chile and nearby countries, a priority because it expedites the delivery of medical aid to the people who urgently need it.

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Though infrastructure in Chile is strong, more than 1.5 million people have been displaced following the earthquake, according to news reports. FEDES, a nonprofit organization that provides medical, educational, and social support in Chile, has requested the material aid for health facilities in Curicó, a town in the heavily affected region of Maule.

Collaborating with governmental and nongovernmental agencies in Chile, Direct Relief staff is working to provide needed medical material aid to help people injured and displaced by the earthquake.

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• Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), a regional office of the World Health Organization
• Fundación Educativa de Desarrollo Economico y Social (FEDES), a nonprofit organization based in Santiago that works to better the conditions of the nation’s poorest hospitals and medical institutions as one of its programs
• Oficina Nacional de Emergencias e Información (ONEMI), a Chilean government agency dedicated to the prevention, organization, coordination and information relative to natural disasters
• The Chilean Consulate office in Los Angeles
• The Archdiocese of Lima, Peru, a trusted partner in earthquake response, as proven after the 2007 Peru earthquake.
• The Hawaii Primary Care Association, which was in the tsunami-warning area immediately after the earthquake struck.

Several leading healthcare manufacturers contacted over the weekend have offered support, including Abbott, Ansell Healthcare, GlaxoSmithKline, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Covidien, Henry Schein, Johnson & Johnson and The Allergan Foundation.

Direct Relief is staying in close contact with emergency responders to provide medical aid as needed to help the people of Chile affected by the earthquake.

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Through its partner the Education Foundation for Economic and Social Development (FEDES) in Chile, Direct Relief is providing medical aid to the General Hospital of Curicó, which collapsed in the earthquake. The hospital, which is located in the heavily affected region of Maule, has established temporary facilities in a nearby school and in a tent hospital. The hospital has requested a variety of materials, including surgical instruments, medical supplies, and personal hygiene items for displaced families.

FedEx, a strong supporter of Direct Relief’s emergency response work, is airlifting the critically needed aid to Chile free of charge.

Direct Relief is also sourcing needed materials from medical product donors to support partners providing medical care for the thousands of people affected by the earthquake. Dedicated corporate supporters Abbott, BD, Procter & Gamble, and Covidien, which have operations in Chile, have offered to donate products for the relief effort directly from their local warehouses. Eli Lilly has also committed $25,000 in support of the earthquake response.

The post Direct Relief Commits Up to $100,000 Cash for Chile Response appeared first on Direct Relief.

In the immediate aftermath of an emergency, search and rescue operations and damage assessments are essential priorities to save lives and organize appropriate response efforts.

As search and rescue operations and initial damage assessments are performed by Chilean authorities, Direct Relief will continue to liaise with Chilean organizations and with colleague international organizations with operations in Chile. Direct Relief is preparing to respond based on long experience to earthquakes, including the ongoing effort in Haiti, but will coordinate with local actors to ensure any response is properly targeted.

News reports indicated that 122 people have been killed and structures have been damaged in Santiago, the capital, which is 200 miles from the epicenter in Concepcion; Chile President Michelle Bachelet has declared a “state of catastrophe.” A tsunami warning has been issued for Peru, Ecuador, and Hawaii. Direct Relief is monitoring the situation as assessments are conducted.

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