July 2016 – July 2018
Completed project
Enhancement of the educational offer of the Faculty of Medical Biology of the Unité Diocésane d'Enseignement de Recherche et de Service de Hinche
The project, launched in July 2016 and concluded two years later, aimed to contribute to the strengthening of the training capacity of Notre Dâme University of Haiti and its laboratory in order to enable it to provide essential services to the local population. From being mainly a venue for theoretical and face-to-face lectures for the students of the University, the laboratory has become a centre for carrying out some basic clinical examinations in clinical chemistry, haematology, parasitology and infectious diseases. This intervention was part of the initiatives promoted in the area in favor of the local population following the terrible earthquake that struck the island in 2010.
In this context, the activity of the UDERS laboratory, founded for teaching purposes related to the Faculties of Medical Biology and Nursing Sciences, was particularly important. The earthquake has radically changed the situation both because of the new pressing needs of the population, but also because of the need to find on site the means of support for the teaching activities. The opening to the public of the clinical examinations service has placed the University of UDERS more in the social context of the territory and the improvement of the teaching and operational efficiency of the laboratory, in addition to better responding to the needs of the local population, has also acted as an important tool to counter the trend of expatriation of qualified personnel.
The lead partner of the intervention, in which Università Cattolica participated as a partner through the University Centre for International Solidarity, was the University of Notre Dâme of Haiti UNDH, which is highly appreciated and well known in the area. It currently has four Faculties and two High Schools located in different locations, each of which is called UDERS, Unité Diocésaine d'Enseignement de Recherche et de Service. The Faculty of Medical Biology is part of the island's network of health institutions and over the years has specialized in higher education.
The intervention provided for the implementation of the following activities:
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training activities aimed at students and health workers;
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strengthening of the laboratory through structural adaptations, provision of tools for training and basic diagnostics, start up of basic analysis (haematology, clinical chemistry, parasitology, immunology and molecular biology);
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implementation of a laboratory diagnostic service accessible to the population.
The fifth volume of the series “Quaderni del CeSI” entitled Projet Haiti. Développement d’un laboratoire universitaire de biologie médicale edited by Monsignor Graziano Borgonovo was dedicated to the project and the activities carried out.
