CONCORD, Calif. – When local thoracic surgeon Dr. Andreas Kamlot saw the devastation in Haiti, he could not just sit back and donate money. Instead he turned to community partners such as East Bay Cardiovascular and Thoracic Associates; Sutter Hospital; John Muir Hospital; several local physicians; Jet Blue Airways and even Terri Khonsari, founder of Great Parenting Academy, to quickly assemble containers of medical supplies. He then took off for Haiti to roll up his sleeves and help hands-on with earthquake relief.
“I could not sit at home and watch the people in Haiti suffer,” Dr. Kamlot said. “I had to do everything I could do to help and that meant taking time away from my practice to help the people in need.”
“We turned to every resource we could find in the East Bay to help eliminate the suffering of the people in Haiti,” Terri Khonsari said. “Once we secured all of the supplies we could, we tried to find a transportation partner and Jet Blue stepped up to get our materials to Haiti for free.”
Dr. Kamlot recently returned from Haiti and feels his life will be changed forever by his humanitarian outreach effort.
“I am pleased that the local community came together to help people in their time of need,” Dr. Kamlot said. “Living in an earthquake prone area, we know the havoc that a devastating earthquake can have on a region. However the suffering in Haiti is worse than we ever can imagine.”
While in Haiti, Dr Kamlot worked at the 65-bed Hospital Sacre Coure caring for over 400 patients in tents. Currently, this is the only hospital in Haiti performing complex operations. In fact, he performed 25 operations per day to salvage limbs and lives.
Dr. Kamlot also helped create the first “Air Bridge” from south to northern Haiti. There was no functional transport system available before he coordinated this project. He recruited German helicopter pilots to evacuate patients daily from Port Au Prince to Sacre Coure Hospital for complex surgeries.
Dr. Kamlot is still collecting supplies for Haiti and is considering making a second airlift of critical supplies to the area.
For more information about his humanitarian partnership effort, please contact Terri Khonsari at 925-394-4988.
-30-
Media Contact:
Terri Khonsari
Phone: 925-330-6806
