The neighborhood of Upham's Corner in Dorchester has maintained a significant population of Haitian families over many years. So when a horrific earthquake struck Haiti two years ago, Haitian-born health center workers Adelina Alves, Louis Jean-Noel and Marie Dorcely immediately started planning a range of outreach activities and care to address the fall-out from the devastating event.

Adelina, Supervisor of the Community Health Education Program at Upham's Corner, has been working at the Center for twenty-two years and leads outreach and education initiatives for all of Upham's patient populations. Louis and Marie, with their strong community ties and familiarity with Haitian Creole, provide a wide range of support to the Haitian community.    

As a result of the Center's past outreach efforts, the team was able to communicate immediately to the Haitian community through well-established channels such as the Haitian radio station Vwa Lakay, on which two Upham's Corner outreach workers host a weekly spot to discuss issues impacting the Haitian community. Topics range from help with finding fuel assistance to teen employment opportunities to health and wellness tips. In fact, Marie was active with Vwa Lakay before the Center hired her to provide full-time translation and medical support services to Haitian patients seven years ago. "Marie's knowledge of the Haitian community's needs has been a huge asset," says Adelina.  

Shortly after the earthquake, the health center received funding to help displaced families who moved to the area from Haiti after the disaster. Needs of the community quickly began to grow. For example, some local families grew increasingly overwhelmed with the extra family members living with them. In addition, because many Haitians do not speak English, they have immense trouble navigating the social services for which they are eligible. Overwhelmed by phone calls, the Center hired Louis a little over five months ago to serve as a SERG Patient Advocate. Coming to Upham's Corner from a nearby Haitian church which serves the community, Louis immediately knew he had the right skills for the job. He spends his day on the phone and working tirelessly to find patients in need through churches and community centers. Adelina is quick to emphasize that "Louis' work will continue through this organization no matter what happens with this initiative in the future."

In an effort to increase resources for the Haitian community, Upham's Corner has partnered with the Haitian-American Public Health Initiatives (HAPHI), an organization that provides community-based group counseling and mental health support. HAPHI also offers job training and ESL classes, and refers patients who are in need of primary medical care services to Upham's Corner.

According to Adelina, the biggest challenge so far has been the fact that immigration policy and funding for services are not always aligned, putting an enormous burden on agencies working with scarce resources. Difficulties aside, Upham's finds a way to help, and she clarifies that "to get the services here you don't have to be a registered patient -- you just have to be Haitian."

The Upham's SERG team -- along with their grant partners and CEO Edward Grimes -- has gone far and above providing health care for all; they are providing important social support services for a traumatized community.