Building Healthcare Leaders
From our inception, one of Project Medishare’s main goals has been Capacity Building, aiming to empower Haitian healthcare professionals with valuable skills and training. Project Medishare took a great deal of pride in helping to establish the first ever Pediatric Residency program in Haiti at Hospital Bernard Mevs (HBM). Established in 2013 by Dr. Toni Eyssallene, the program was created in order to fill a shocking deficit - in a country with more than 4 million children, Haiti has less than 400 pediatricians.
Dr. Frantzy Dieudonne is a graduate of the Pediatric Residency program at HBM, who was later hired by Project Medishare, first, as a staff pediatrician in 2016 and later promoted to Medical Director of our Marmont health clinics. His hard work and dedication is remarkable, and we are so proud to announce that he has recently been accepted into a prestigious fellowship program in Montreal. While we are sad to see him go, we are thrilled for this exciting opportunity that awaits him.
Dr. Dieudonne shared with us that “Studying medicine was a childhood dream. From a young age, I have always dreamed of becoming a doctor in order to help people who are suffering, especially those who are vulnerable.” He also cites his mother, a nursing assistant, as an influence in wanting to pursue a career in medicine.
“My favorite thing about my medical practice is being able to provide satisfaction through my care to my little patients, who in the majority of cases their parents were in despair of finding an adequate treatment for their children. Generally, these parents come from very far to reach me and have already visited many other hospitals in the region.”
When reflecting on his time in the pediatric residency program at HBM, Dr. Dieudonne describes it as “extraordinary!” Being at one of Port-au-prince’s most reputable hospitals allowed Dr. Dieudonne and his fellow residents the opportunity to observe a wide variety of pediatric cases, including pediatric surgery and pediatric neurology. “We were a very good, dynamic team… our objective was to give better care to children who need it, especially with respect and dignity. In other words, I have only good memories from my time in residency.”
As far as advice for someone looking to enter the field of medicine, Dr. Dieudonne stresses the importance of choosing this career “...out of love. Studying medicine requires a lot of courage, determination and patience.”
We are certainly very proud of Dr. Dieudonne’s hard work and are thankful to have had him on our team for so many years. We wish him all the best in this new exciting endeavor!