Philippines Sends Medical Team toHaiti to HelpTreat Quake Victims

The Philippine government has sent a medical mission to the earthquake-devastated Haiti to help in the treatment of victims who need immediate medical attention and support

Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo has formed a medical mission to Haiti to help treat victims of the catastrophic earthquake that hit the poorest country in the western hemisphere. The medical mission, composed of 25 trauma and orthopedic surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses, sanitary engineers and public health workers, will be deployed on Sunday at the earliest, acting Health Secretary Esperanza Cabral said The earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0 cause major damage to Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti. Most major landmarks were significantly damaged or destroyed, including the Presidential Palace (the President survived), the National Assembly building, the Port-au-Prince Cathedral, and the main jail. Most hospitals were destroyed. The United Nations reported that the headquarters of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), located in the capital, had collapsed and that many UN personnel were unaccounted for. It was reported that the UN Chief of Mission was one of the fatalities though unofficially unaccounted for. President Arroyo said the mission is trying their best to get to Haiti to help in the treatment of earthquake survivors who need medical assistance. She said she has directed the Philippine ambassador to Cuba, MacArthur Corsino, to fly to Haiti to personally check on the estimated 290 Filipinos living and working in Haiti, and “coordinate rescue efforts.''