An Assessment of Health Care Needs and Barriers in a Rural Community of Haiti Justin Gerard 1 ; Dr. Jeffrey Van Laere 2 ; Nabil Othman 1 ; Terrie Ahn 1 ; John Dawdy 1 ; Priyanka Singh 1 ; Lea Monday 1 ; Amy Li 1 ; Dr. Diane Levine 3 1 Wayne State University School of Medicine; 2 Detroit Medical Center Department of Emergency Medicine; 3 Detroit Medical Center Department of Internal Medicine INTRODUCTION RESULTSDISCUSSION METHODS MATERIALS FUTURE STUDIES During a medical missions trip to Morne L’Hopital in Haiti, a needs assessment was conducted to obtain information regarding the healthcare needs of the local population. The goal was to determine obstacles to healthcare, as well as perceived healthcare needs. A qualitative survey was administered individually to clinic patients to determine the most prevalent healthcare needs, obstacles to obtaining healthcare, most frequent point-of- healthcare access, perceived best and worst aspects of Haitian healthcare, and finally needs for improvement. A need for more accessible healthcare clearly exists in this community. It is the hope of the WHSO that a more permanent and sustainable clinic be established to meet the needs of the Morne L’Hopital population. In order to accomplish this, a more thorough assessment regarding the strategic, legal, and financial barriers that exist must be conducted. The survey was conducted by a two person team, consisting of a medical student and a translator. Participants were selected at random from a group of patients whom were waiting to be triaged. All medical students involved in the study were required to complete CITI training. The survey was adjusted in response to difficulties that arose while conducting the survey. Question 1.a. was excluded from the survey. Participants had a difficult time discerning the meaning of the question, or providing a response. Participants were also providing similar responses to questions one and seven. A greater emphasis was placed on problems with the healthcare system when question seven was asked. 213 patients were enrolled in the study. 56.8% stated that cost was the largest obstacle to obtaining healthcare. 41.7% expressed problems regarding healthcare access (not enough doctors and/or lack of transportation). A large majority accessed healthcare via large general hospitals; the exact reasons for this are unclear, although we hypothesize that this is because there are limited other options. These findings support the importance of maintaining a clinic in the area to circumvent the obstacles stated above. Our free clinic provides an opportunity for patients to access healthcare for primary care conditions that would likely go untreated otherwise. While our clinic is temporarily able to address many of the concerns brought up by this assessment, more must be done to provide sustainable and self-sufficient solutions. World Health Student Organization Needs Assessment Site/Clinic: Respondent’s Age: Respondent’s Gender: Relationship to patient: self____ parent_____ grandparent_____ spouse_____ other relative______ non-relative_______ 1. What are the 3 most pressing healthcare concerns you have about adults in your home? About children? a. What are different healthcare concerns you have at different times of the year, e.g., the rainy season? 2. Who in your household makes decisions about healthcare (e.g., where to go, when to go)? 3. Where do you normally go for healthcare for adults? For children? 4. What are the biggest obstacles to getting your healthcare needs met? 5. What is required to help you improve the health of adults in your household? Children in your household? 6. What are the best aspects of healthcare available in your community? 7. What are the problems with the healthcare available in your community? 8. How could we (US medical students) improve the healthcare we provide when we are in country?