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You Can Help: Local Public Health Staff Need ShelterLocal public health experts and support staff in Haiti are ready to get back to work protecting earthquake survivors from disease and injury. But, as you can imagine, it's hard to help others when your own family is still in need. CDC teams are very concerned about their Haitian colleagues and their families, many of whom are still sleeping outdoors without shelter. As a federal agency, however, CDC cannot quickly and easily purchase temporary shelters and supplies for local public health workers and their families. With your support, the CDC Foundation is stepping in to meet this need. Your gift of $120 will purchase a family-sized tent to shelter a public health worker and his or her family. Your gift, in any amount, will make a difference. Give Now CDC has already used the CDC Foundation's Global Disaster Response Fund to purchase some tents and supplies for local staff. Matt Brown, a CDC expert deployed to Haiti, reported back about the initial purchases: "I wanted to drop you a quick note to say thank you for helping CDC acquire tents to send to the local staff. Nearly all of the staff has been sleeping outside since the earthquake ... David, who is one of the drivers, has been sleeping in his car since the quake and will be able to spend the night in a shelter with his family thanks to these tents. In addition, last week, we distributed some care packages to the staff, with water filtration, cloths, tarps, and other items which the staff really appreciated... The staff here are all working so hard since the quake to keep the program functioning. These small gifts mean a tremendous amount and are immediately helpful to the people on the ground..." More tents are needed. You can help. Give Now Rebuilding Haiti's Public Health InfrastructureCDC experts also anticipate that help from the private sector will be needed to help restore Haiti's public health infrastructure - rebuilding facilities, reconnecting data and communications systems, strengthening laboratory capacity and establishing programs to train local disease detectives and public health experts. With your help, the CDC Foundation is committed to helping CDC address these challenges. You can help. Make a gift now online or by calling (888) 880-4CDC. |
Quick LinksMake a Gift to the Foundation's Global Disaster Response Fund Q&A with CDC's Incident Manager in Haiti CDC Information about the Haiti Earthquake Response CDC's Marcus Emergency Operations Center |
Global Disaster Response Fund
Following the December 2004 tsunami disaster in southern Asia, CDC teams were called to the region to provide critical assistance to the survivors and to monitor for deadly disease outbreaks. CDC Foundation president and CEO Charles Stokes quickly met with CDC officials to find out what the Foundation could do to help.
He learned that while CDC responders are well-trained and well-equipped for disaster situations, some specialized equipment – such as additional satellite phones, pocket PCs and a camera with global satellite positioning capabilities – would help them do their work more quickly and efficiently. The CDC Foundation established a new Global Disaster Response Fund to make it possible for people to contribute to CDC’s tsunami response efforts and to enable CDC to instantly purchase the equipment needed.
The fund is the international counterpart to the CDC Foundation’s Emergency Preparedness and Response Fund, established after 9/11 to address public health emergencies affecting the United States. The Global Disaster Response Fund provides immediate, flexible resources to CDC experts addressing public health emergencies around the world - whether natural disasters like the tsunami, emerging diseases like SARS or avian influenza, or manmade biological threats.
“CDC will always have needs that cannot be met quickly during an emergency situation. The Foundation and its private sector partners can help fill that gap and arm CDC with critical resources in times of crisis,” Stokes says.
You can make a contribution to the CDC Foundation’s Global Disaster Response Fund online or by calling (888) 880-4CDC.