Jewish Health International

February 2008

JHI Summer Camp Initiative to Support Children with Developmental and Physical Disabilities- a new model for JHI

In the FSU, children with challenges are not mainstreamed and have limited opportunity to interact with their peers and for their families to have opportunities to connect with other families facing similar challenges. JHI developed a program for a summer camp, providing the children the opportunity to interact while their families were offered support and training for exercises, games, stimulating activities and general provision of care.

Ultrasound Machine Donation in Memory of Dr. John Goldkrand

In November 2007, JHI participated in the dedication of the "JOHN GOLDKRAND MEDICAL CLINIC" and presented of a state of the art portable ultrasound machine to the Gynecologic Clinic at the Maternity Hospital in Odessa, Ukraine. Dr. John Goldkrand, an OB/GYN who participated on multiple JHI missions to Odessa, passed away suddenly in Dec 2005. His wife, AM, set up a foundation to fulfill his dream of donating an ultrasound machine to the Odessa Gynecologic Clinic. JHI called on their partner General Electric to get the machine donated, which allowed the foundation dollars to be used for furnishing the new Hesed (Jewish Welfare Society) Medical Clinic in Odessa. AM Goldkrand joined the JHI November mission to Odessa to share in this very meaningful dedication.

June 2008

JHI Coordinates Health Fair in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana

On Tuesday, May 6th, JHI led a team of 20 volunteers from the Women's Philanthropy division of the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta to work at a free health fair at the Plaquemines Medical Center Clinic in Port Sulphur, Louisiana, an area devastated by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The health fair was organized to help address unmet medical needs of residents. Over 70 men, women and children were screened for vision, hearing and general health related issues. All individuals with pathology or in need of further medical care were immediately referred to the Plaquemines Medical Clinic system or to local physicians. The health fair was a groundbreaking project for JHI and JHI intends to replicate it in other cities. In addition, JHI helped secure a full vision screening lane for the clinic which is now able to offer vision screening to local residents.

Missions Update

Riga, Latvia continued to focus on JHI's long-term project of developing Bikur Holim Hospital's Dental Center of Excellence. In addition to the dental track, JHI delivered training in Pain Management and Gastroenterology. A follow-up assessment of Bikur Holim’s Endoscopy Clinic revealed that the endoscopy unit donated by JHI in 2002 has been put to very good use, with the Clinic regularly performing 60 "uppers" and 15 "colons" per month!

Kishinev, Moldova offered a 5-day Nursing course, under the sponsorship of the Nursing Association of Moldova. Other highlights included lectures in the community, to doctors and other healthcare professionals on current trends in geriatric care and end of life care.

Odessa, Ukraine offered a dental only mission. The JHI team worked in Polyclinic #5, assisting, consulting and helping treat patients. The team was credited with bringing the latest information on improvements in dental care to help advance clients' oral cavity care in the FSU.

Vision Screenings in Israel

In April, 2008, JHI conducted vision screenings for Ethiopian Olim in three absorption centers in Israel In total, 289 Olim were screened and provided with eyeglasses, readers or referred for further examination.

August 2008

JHI's First "Reverse Mission" brings Minsk Cardiologist to Atlanta

Working with repeat past mission participant, Dr. Michael Lipsitt, JHI was able to coordinate JHI's first ever "reverse mission. " Dr. Dmitry Goncharik of the Belorussian Association of Cardiology spent one week at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Atlanta, with top electrophysiologists from Dr. Lipsitt's practice to learn how to utilize equipment for intracardiac electrophysiology testing and ablation of various cardiac arrhythmias. The mission was a great success, and JHI plans to send a follow-up team to Minsk in the fall.

JHI Holds June Board meeting in Washington, DC

In June, 2008 JHI board members had our fiscal year closing Board Meeting. The venue this year was Washington DC. We had a very successful two day meeting, with strategic planning our major focus. We installed our new board of directors, lead by Stan Hirsch, (left) pictured here with fellow board member’s wife, Sylvia Busis.

The Board meeting culminated in luncheon to which our sites' Ambassadors and their representatives, past participants and other DC dignitaries were invited. Including board members, we had 36 people in attendance and enjoyed visiting with Ambassador Oleh Shamshur, of Ukraine; Mr. Ohad Cohen the Commercial Attaché from the Embassy of Israel; Ms. Mariana Roibu, First Secretary of the Embassy of Moldova; Dr. Marya Levintova from the Fogarty International Center of the National Institutes of Health; Mark Levin and Leslie Weiss, from the National Council for Soviet Jewry; Mr. Barry Nove, Senior Development Officer with the Jewish Federation of Washington DC; former Board members,past participants and friend of JHI:Dr. Gary Leff, Dr. Alex Osinovsky, Dr. Sandra Barmack, Dr. Manny Stadlin, Nancy Hartman and Janet Kurlan. It was a Latvian national holiday, so Ambassador Andrejs Pildegovics was unable to attend. The Belarusian Chargé d'Affairs, Mr. Oleg Kravchenko was unavoidably detained and was unable to join us. It was a special weekend and everyone was very pleased with the outcome.

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