Author: Wood Guerlin TELLUS

Collaborators:

COVID-19 exposed the Haitian health system. Already devastated by socio-political-economic crises, this was one crisis too many. In the last week of March 2020, the government declared a state of emergency and a month later the cases were on the rise and experts were already talking about a peak for Haiti. To this end, many awareness capsules have been put online to prevent COVID-19. Radio interventions, television shows, webinairs have been used to educate the Haitian population on the actions and barriers to observe in these times of pandemic. Like many other times, people with disabilities and who represent nearly 10% of the population were less reached by this information. Aware of this fact and taking advantage of a grant from the Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF), nine Haitian students and eight Canadian students, in their respective countries, collaborated under the supervision of professors from the University of Sherbrooke to bring a response to this alarming situation detrimental to people with disabilities. The main objective was to inform people with disabilities about public health instructions to reduce the spread and consequences of COVID-19. It was a largely successful project despite the significant obstacles encountered throughout this initiative.

To do this, we have developed awareness capsules, taking into account the challenges of people with disabilities (visually impaired people, deaf-mute people and all those living with other physical or mental disabilities) in order to influence behaviors that can decrease the spread of the disease. The first step was to collect information from our target population. Thanks to these relevant informations, the capsules have been developed taking into account the barriers and facilitators for this clientele in order to optimize the chances of overcoming these challenges. For example, our awareness videos have been translated into Creole and sign language to reach the visually impaired and the deaf-mute population. Since the majority of this population has limited access to technology, and therefore to the internet as well, different mediums have been used to reach them: distribution of leaflets, social media posts , websites and radio broadcasts, oral presentations in churches and community organizations. Despite the obstacles and learning challenges to overcome during these eight months of hard work such as telecommuting for our meetings, the power shortage and the glaring instability of the Internet network in Haiti, this valiant, strong and united team has enabled people with disabilities to be better equipped with regard to useful and important information that would allow them to protect their lives and those of their loved ones facing the threat of COVID-19.

This project not only allowed people with disabilities to have access to adapted content and to have the feeling that the population cares about them, but it also allowed all these Haitian and Quebec students to develop skills and abilities they did not even think they had in them. For example, it allowed people from two different cultures to work together for a common goal. In addition, the team members demonstrated self-determination and gained greater confidence especially by sharpening their communication skills. All participants agree that they are winners coming out of this enriching experience. Ms. Janet O’FLYNN, Dean of the Faculty of Sciences of Rehabilitation of Léogane (FSRL) in Haiti, mentions that this project has above all allowed students to experience educational expectations at a high level and created opportunities to meet intercultural challenges between Haitians and Canadians. According to her, students learned to manage all aspects of a large project, divide tasks among team members, and overcome obstacles to achieve goals on time. Karly Emmanuel JEAN, occupational therapy student at FSRL, declares: “This project was a success for me despite the multiple obstacles that we encountered. I learned to be independent and was able to develop more leadership and self-confidence. If the University of Sherbrooke offers me another project, I will answer yes without hesitation for a second. It was a great collaborative experience supporting Haitians with disabilities and I feel fulfilled in the end”. Speaking of obstacles, Clinetana PRINO, also a student at FSRL, continues: “As the person responsible for organizing the broadcasting of the knowledge and for the distribution of the sanitary materials, I encountered many difficulties such as the insecurity prevailing throughout the country, but in collaboration with my colleagues, we managed to buy all our equipment and distribute it to our partners. In addition, we were able to produce our radio broadcasts. This project has been an intense learning experience for me”. Speaking of advantages and disadvantages of such a project, Oliverio LEMUS-FOLGAR, a Quebec student, agrees: “In my experience, this project required an adaptation in the ways of working of different participants. Indeed, in North America, it is anchored in our culture a notion of time which is very different in Haiti. This cultural difference often appeared during meetings and communications. As a result of teamwork, we ended up finding a work balance, which contributed to optimal collaboration from that point on. Also, the biggest and most persistent obstacle was the technological challenges my peers in Haiti faced. There were times when the resource gap only annoyed me. I can’t even imagine the emotions they evoked in my colleagues in Haiti. This therefore made communication difficult since it was mainly done online on electronic platforms. In the end, thanks to the grant received, we managed to equip the Haitian interns, which helped overcome our technological challenges”.

This project not only allowed people with disabilities to have access to adapted content and to have the feeling that the population cares about them, but it also allowed all these Haitian and Quebec students to develop skills and abilities they did not even think they had in them. For example, it allowed people from two different cultures to work together for a common goal. In addition, the team members demonstrated self-determination and gained greater confidence especially by sharpening their communication skills. All participants agree that they are winners coming out of this enriching experience. Ms. Janet O’FLYNN, Dean of the Faculty of Sciences of Rehabilitation of Léogane (FSRL) in Haiti, mentions that this project has above all allowed students to experience educational expectations at a high level and created opportunities to meet intercultural challenges between Haitians and Canadians. According to her, students learned to manage all aspects of a large project, divide tasks among team members, and overcome obstacles to achieve goals on time. Karly Emmanuel JEAN, occupational therapy student at FSRL, declares: “This project was a success for me despite the multiple obstacles that we encountered. I learned to be independent and was able to develop more leadership and self-confidence. If the University of Sherbrooke offers me another project, I will answer yes without hesitation for a second. It was a great collaborative experience supporting Haitians with disabilities and I feel fulfilled in the end”. Speaking of obstacles, Clinetana PRINO, also a student at FSRL, continues: “As the person responsible for organizing the broadcasting of the knowledge and for the distribution of the sanitary materials, I encountered many difficulties such as the insecurity prevailing throughout the country, but in collaboration with my colleagues, we managed to buy all our equipment and distribute it to our partners. In addition, we were able to produce our radio broadcasts. This project has been an intense learning experience for me”. Speaking of advantages and disadvantages of such a project, Oliverio LEMUS-FOLGAR, a Quebec student, agrees: “In my experience, this project required an adaptation in the ways of working of different participants. Indeed, in North America, it is anchored in our culture a notion of time which is very different in Haiti. This cultural difference often appeared during meetings and communications. As a result of teamwork, we ended up finding a work balance, which contributed to optimal collaboration from that point on. Also, the biggest and most persistent obstacle was the technological challenges my peers in Haiti faced. There were times when the resource gap only annoyed me. I can’t even imagine the emotions they evoked in my colleagues in Haiti. This therefore made communication difficult since it was mainly done online on electronic platforms. In the end, thanks to the grant received, we managed to equip the Haitian interns, which helped overcome our technological challenges”.