Students and members of the Boston University community convened at a special health forum at the School of Public Health on the Medical Campus on Wednesday to discuss the earthquake disaster in Haiti.
The purpose of the forum was to give people the opportunity to begin to understand what they can do to help, SPH Spokeswoman Sharon Britton said.
‘People have an overwhelming desire to help and be effective,’ she said. ‘This forum gave an opportunity to talk about and hear advice about what to do and think about in the future.’
SPH Dean Robert Meenan said he was pleased with the number of students who turned out for the event.
‘We hold public health forums every month and this is the biggest crowd we’ve seen in years,’ he said. ‘Clearly there is much interest. We are an educational institution so we are trying to provide an opportunity for teaching and learning.’
The discussion, led by international health lecturer Monica Onyango and Director of Emergency Preparedness for the Massachusetts Department of Public Health Mary Clark, discussed the importance of continuing development of Haiti in the future.
‘We must think developmentally,’ Onyango said. ‘Most of the time dollars move on, but they are still needed for reconstruction.’
It can be hard for people to understand the impacts of such a large-scale event unless they have experienced it personally, Clark said.
Meenan said he thinks it is hard for students to know exactly what’s happening in Haiti.
‘When we say ‘weak infrastructure,’ students don’t quite know what that means,’ he said. ‘They can’t quite imagine it.’
Graduate student Michelle Laguerre, who is of Haitian descent, said the disaster opened her eyes to how bad conditions were.
‘It made me realize that we have to get involved and how as a community we have to help Haiti,’ she said. ‘And I really can’t express how grateful I am for everyone’s love.’
Aside from her parents, Laguerre said the rest of her family still resides in Haiti.
‘We need to provide resources but do it in a way that’s sustainable so people can provide for themselves,’ she said. ‘What is important too is how to keep this visible so that people don’t just turn their backs once the cameras leave.’
Clark said sometimes even the best intentions can be misguided in such a disaster.
‘We have to be cautious of letting our need to want to help not get in the way of their needs on the ground,’ she said.
SPH has also started an online forum, sph.bu.edu/helpforhaiti to compile and present information about ways for students and others to get involved and donate.
This version corrects an earlier version of this story that incorrectly stated the School of Medicine held the forum on Haiti when it was the School of Public Health that did so.