The Direct Relief-chartered MD-11 cargo jet contained $21 million (wholesale) in donated medical resources from 44 companies (full list of companies below), including extensive quantities of intravenous solutions and prescription medications for acute conditions and chronic diseases such as diabetes and hypertension that can rapidly become medical emergencies if not managed. 

“This airlift will go a long way towards helping our fellow Americans in Puerto Rico, and I am eternally grateful to Direct Relief and all of the organizations involved,” said President Bill Clinton, 42nd President of the United States, and founder and board chair of the Clinton Foundation. “Their efforts are a reminder that when so many people need our help, our common humanity matters even more.”

The Clinton Foundation has supported Direct Relief’s work for years, including the recovery efforts after the 2010 Haiti earthquake and the response to the Ebola epidemic in West Africa in 2014. In the response to the Caribbean hurricanes this year, the Clinton Foundation has helped to coordinate and advise the team at Direct Relief.

Businesses Step Up to Fill Resource Gap

Direct Relief works with dozens of healthcare companies’ philanthropic arms on an ongoing basis to address public health needs and humanitarian crises across the globe and in all 50 U.S. states.  This private philanthropic support from businesses, as well as philanthropic support from individuals, foundations, and organizations has enabled a massively stepped-up response to assist in Puerto Rico, where health services have been severely constricted by the extensive damage caused by Hurricane Maria.

44 companies joined in filling specific requests that Direct Relief received from nonprofit health centers, government facilities, and private hospitals in Puerto Rico – all of which have been struggling to restore and expand services to care for the island’s more than 3 million residents.

“Direct Relief has been a wonderful partner for Eli Lilly and Company,” said Rob Smith, senior director of corporate responsibility and president of the Eli Lilly and Company Foundation.  “We have worked together to get insulin to those impacted by the devastating effects of Hurricane Maria.  Lilly could not ask for a more capable, responsive, and compassionate partner.  We are so grateful for all of the things Direct Relief is doing to help the great people of Puerto Rico recover from this terrible disaster.”

The medicines and supplies on the flight were donated by the following companies:

3M; Abbott; AbbVie; Alcon; Allergan plc; Amneal Pharmaceuticals; Apotex Inc.; AstraZeneca; Baxter International Inc.; Bayer; BD; Boehringer Ingelheim Cares Foundation; Bristol-Myers Squibb; Cera Products, Inc.; Cipla; Coola Suncare; CVS; DayOne Response; Ethicon; GSK; Henry Schein, Inc.; Integra LifeSciences; InTouch Health; Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson; Kaléo; LifeScan; Magno-Humphries Labs; Medtronic; Merck & Co., Inc.; Mylan; Nephron Pharmaceuticals Corporation; Noble Laboratories, Inc.; Novartis; Pfizer Inc.; Prestige Brands; Sagent Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Sanofi Foundation for NA; Sappo Hill Soapworks; Starbucks; Teva Pharmaceuticals, USA; Trividia Health; Vaseline; Wisconsin Pharmacal Company. 

Responding to an Unprecedented Hurricane Season

Today’s airlift follows several weeks of smaller-scale airlifts and hand-carried medications and emergency medical resources to dozens of Puerto Rico’s nonprofit health centers and medical teams organized by the Puerto Rico Department of Health.

Among the critical items has been 565 vials of blood-clotting factor for children with hemophilia, 15,600 vials of insulin, 35 pre-kitted emergency medical packs containing a broad range of Rx medications and supplies, as well as 1500 solar lights and over 4000 bottles of insect repellant to protect against Zika virus.

Direct Relief’s response in Puerto Rico has been concurrent with extensive responses to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma that preceded Maria.

Since Hurricane Harvey’s landfall on August 25, Direct Relief has sent 148 tons of medications, vaccines, and medical supplies valued at $64.7 million (wholesale) and including 19 million defined daily doses of Rx medications delivered via 560 emergency shipments to 143 partner organizations in Texas, Florida, Puerto Rico, USVI and seven Caribbean countries.

In addition, Direct Relief has provided and committed financial support in the form of grants totaling over $2.7 million to 43 nonprofit health centers and clinics and their primary care associations in Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico.

The post 76-Ton Airlift of Medicine and Medical Supplies Lands in Puerto Rico   appeared first on Direct Relief.

More than 1 million people in Haiti are still in need due to the hurricane, and disease remains rampant, with almost 4,000 cholera cases reported since Oct. 4.

Direct Relief was quick to respond to healthcare partners after the storm and will continue to do so through the recovery.

Financial Summary

Direct Relief received more than 3,000 Hurricane Matthew-designated financial contributions totaling $827,962; including pledges, the total increases to $1,071,266.

Direct Relief recognizes that the generous supporters who pledged and gave more than $1 million in response to Hurricane Matthew did so with the express intent that their contributions benefit people affected by the storm.

In accepting funds for Hurricane Matthew, Direct Relief understands that both those who contributed — and the people for whose benefit the contributions were made — deserve to know, in detail, how Direct Relief is using these funds.

*Direct Relief does not rely on government funding.

The Response

As the world’s attention shifts, Direct Relief remains committed to supporting the needs of local healthcare providers in Haiti and the U.S.

United States

Direct Relief shipped $1.3 million worth of supplies to impacted communities in the U.S. after Matthew. Five tons of medicines and medical supplies were sent in 29 different shipments.

Before the storm made landfall, Direct Relief had prepositioned emergency medical modules in the hurricane’s path. Two were opened after the storm, one at the Roanoke Chowan Community Health Center in North Carolina, and another at the Franklin C. Fetter Health Care Network in South Carolina.

Each U.S.–bound pack contains enough medicines and supplies to treat 100 patients for three to five days after a hurricane hits.

Haiti

Roadways and bridges were washed away by the storm, and some of the hardest-hit communities in the southwestern part of the country also proved the most difficult to access. In the following weeks, Direct Relief used any means possible to transport aid, including by helicopters and ships.

Since Oct. 4, Direct Relief delivered $10 million worth of medicines and medical supplies to Haiti – nearly 20 tons. That included more than half a million daily doses of medication.

Material Support

Below is a list of companies that contributed medical resources to the response.

Looking Forward

Cholera persists as a life-threatening force in the country, and Direct Relief will continue to supply partners with supplies to treat this preventable, but deadly, disease. Direct Relief is continuing to deliver shipments of oral rehydration salts, IV equipment and other needed supplies.

The next delivery is scheduled to arrive in the coming days with more than 500,000 water purification sachets. Each sachet can clean 10 liters of drinking water. In total, the shipment will result in nearly 1.5 million gallons of safe drinking water.

The shipment will also contain oral rehydration salts, which can be mixed with the purified water to restore the electrolytes of a dehydrated person.

The post Hurricane Matthew: The Response Continues appeared first on Direct Relief.

Not only did the floodwaters tear homes from their foundations, but it broke gas lines, causing some buildings to engulf in flames.

While floodwaters have since receded, the recovery has just begun for many of West Virginia residents.

Direct Relief’s Response:

In the early hours of the emergency, Direct Relief offered immediate assistance to its existing network of healthcare partners in the affected region, as well as the West Virginia Primary Care Association. Requests for assistance came in right away, with partners expressing an urgent need for a large volume of supplies.

As of July 13, Direct Relief has provided the following health centers and clinics with 40 shipments of Rx medications, vaccines, diabetic supplies and insulin, and personal care items, along with emergency medical kits designed to equip health facilities with the medicines resources required to meet the needs of patients immediately after natural or manmade disaster.

• Access Health, a health center based in Raleigh County, was severely impacted by flooding. Still, the health center’s staff have operated a free clinic for flood victims at its Williamsburg location as well as a mobile pharmacy to reach the worst-hit flood areas. Access Health has also provided tetanus vaccinations (Tdap) to highway workers and patients and has partnered with the National Guard to distribute generators and supplies to families in need. To support their efforts, Direct Relief delivered an emergency health kit — a set of essential medicines and supplies designed for emergencies such as this.
• Cabin Creek Health Systems operates four clinic sites across West Virginia, one of which was severely impacted by the floods and, consequentially, experience an urgent need for Tdap, which Direct Relief provided. Direct Relief also provided medicine to another of Cabin Creek’s clinics, 30 miles from Clendenin Health Center.
• Roane County Family Health Care, a Direct Relief partner since 2009, has partnered with the West Virginia Primary Care Association to organize outreach efforts throughout the southern part of Roane County, where they have visited shelters to provide medical care and distribute supplies, including those delivered by Direct Relief.
• West Virginia Health Right, a free clinic in Charleston, has provided medical relief services throughout West Virginia’s most impacted areas. The clinic building has doubled as a large distribution hub for medical supplies throughout the community.

A photo posted by WVPB (@wvpublic) on Jun 24, 2016 at 6:26am PDT

Partners in Relief

The medical supplies, valued at more than $1 million, were donated by more than 25 companies. They include the following:

• 3M
• AbbVie
• Actavis
• Allergan
• Apotex
• AstraZeneca
• Baxter
• BD
• Boehringer Ingelheim
• Calmoseptine
• Colgate
• Covidien
• CVS
• GSK

• Henry Schein
• J&J (Janssen, J&J Consumer, LifeScan)
• Medtronic
• MedVantx
• Merck
• Pfizer
• Prestige
• Sanofi
• Sappo Hill
• Takeda
• Terry Town
• TEVA
• Unilever

Updated 17:27 PT, July 13, 2016

The post West Virginia: Flood Response appeared first on Direct Relief.

Volunteer Molly Green came with her daughter and said it was very special for them to celebrate International Women’s Day together as empowering women and girls is a passion they share.

“Direct Relief has always been near and dear to our hearts and we’re so impressed with the work that [Direct Relief] does and the impact it has on the world,” said Green.

Obstetric fistula is a hole in the birth canal caused by prolonged and obstructed labor that, if untreated, leaves women with constant and uncontrollable leakage of urine and/or feces. In addition to physical injuries, many women with fistula suffer humiliation, isolation, and stigma as a result of the smell and constant leakage.

The condition can often be repaired with surgery, but many women who are eligible for surgery are placed on a waiting list. Sometimes it can take weeks and possibly even months for the women who have been identified as candidates to receive the repair surgery.

That’s why Direct Relief developed the Dignity Kits – a type of care pack for women who are awaiting obstetric fistula surgery. The kits contain cleansing spray, soap, moisturizer, maternity pads, cleansing wipes, a toothbrush, toothpaste, and a notepad.

These items were made available with generous donations from 3M, Covidien, Henry Schein, Neutrogena, Sappo Hill Soapworks, and individuals.

Each kit is valued at about $30 each. To support Direct Relief’s maternal and child health programs, you can make a donation here.

The post 1,000 Dignity Kits Readied for Women Awaiting Obstetric Fistula Repair appeared first on Direct Relief.

Twice a year volunteers assemble the packs, which are distributed to 30 social service agencies throughout the county who assist local individuals and low-income families. Some very special volunteers came out to pack on Friday.

For 11-year-old Jackson Wooten and his mom, Maureen Wooten, packing the kits was a way for them to give back after they found themselves in need eight years ago while living in Biloxi, Mississippi when Hurricane Katrina devastated the city, damaging many of their family and friends’ homes.

“These are the same products we got [after Katrina],” said Jackson. “I wanted to help others like we were helped.”

Also among the volunteer packers was a crew of five employees from Sappo Hill Soapworks, who have donated all-natural soaps for the Care Packs for the last nine years. The drove more than 10 hours from Ashland, Oregon just to be a part of the event and see first-hand how their donations are making a difference.

“When I found out about Direct Relief, I knew it was an organization we wanted to support,” said Sappo Hill’s Stacey Miller.

She said their team was thrilled to come to Direct Relief’s headquarters and that they’re excited to continue supporting the work in whatever way they can. In addition to Sappo Hill’s soaps, this season’s packs were made possible with products donated from Chattem Inc., Johnson & Johnson Consumer Companies, Prestige Brands as well as generous support from the Wells Fargo Foundation and Wood-Claeyssens Foundation.

Direct Relief has worked to improve the health and lives of people locally in Santa Barbara for 50 years. Find out more about other local programs at this link: http://j.mp/RJiXF0

The post Volunteers Organize Care Packs for Neighbors in Need appeared first on Direct Relief.

The cash commitment, enabled in part by donations from over 7,500 individual contributors who contributed via Google Checkout, will be used to furnish essential medical material to health facilities in Myanmar and partner organizations providing health services to people affected by the cyclone that struck last week.

The intial infusion of medical resources includes supplies to provide 21,300 courses of treatment for patients with bacterial and upper respiratory infections, dehydration, diarrhea, cholera and other water-borne diseases, as well as basic instruments and materials for wound care and other trauma needs.  The materials were specifically requested by in-country facilities run by a colleague nonprofit organization, which obtained clearance to receive and distribute the materials.

Direct Relief is working with international organizations with Myanmar-based health programs and regional organizations with community-based programs inside Myanmar.

“Because of our experiences responding to other emergencies involving surges of water in the region – particularly the 2004 Asian tsunami and Cyclone Sidr in Bangladesh last year we know what types of needs arise, and consequently keep the supplies to fulfill those needs on hand,” said Direct Relief’s Emergency Response Coordinator Brett Williams.

In addition to the thousands of individual contributions, Direct Relief has received substantial support from healthcare companies. The initial aid sent today containes medicines and other materials donated by long-time Direct Relief supporters, including Abbott, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Boehringer Ingelheim, Cera Products Inc., the Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies, MedVantx, Midmark, Sappo Hill Soapworks, and Sunnight Solar. Henry Schein Inc. also has responded generously with donations of essential medical items for this emergency.

The post Direct Relief Commits $500,000 In Cash To Relief Effort appeared first on Direct Relief.