OSF in Peoria Denying Care to their Haitian Patients

See this Forum article I wrote and the Peoria Journal Star printed today.


Forum: OSF failing patients from Haiti with urgent needs.

Posted Jul 15, 2010 @ 11:00 PM
Re. July 5 article: "Children's Hospital tours scheduled":

I am sure the brand new, $290 million OSF Children's Hospital and Emergency Department is beautiful and will be loaded with technology. People from central Illinois deserve this structure, along with competent medical personnel inside to deliver high-quality care.

However, every society around the world deserves the same chance at cutting-edge medicine.

During the last seven years Haitian Hearts patients who have returned to Haiti after heart surgery at OSF have been categorically denied follow-up surgery at OSF. Several weeks ago, a young girl operated on 13 years ago at OSF died in Haiti. She needed repeat heart surgery.

It's difficult to find other medical centers in the U.S. to take OSF's Haitian patients. They believe Haitian patients cared for in Peoria are OSF's medical and ethical responsibility.

Two more Haitian patients operated on at OSF need heart surgery again. They survived the devastating January earthquake and both have been homeless in Port-au-Prince. Last month I examined them. Both will die without heart surgery soon.

Haitian Hearts donated over $1.1 million to Children's Hospital of Illinois earlier this decade to help build this new OSF medical complex. We would pay for both of these patients, as well.

Over 130 years ago, OSF's founding Sisters said they would turn no one away. The current OSF Sisters say the same, but unfortunately Haitian Hearts patients have been excluded from their mission.

The new OSF medical complex needs to show how "beautiful and uplifting" it really could be. OSF could really shine if they would accept back their Haitian patients and give them another chance at life.

John A. Carroll, M.D.

Haitian Hearts Medical Director

West Peoria

Copyright 2010 pjstar.com.
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I am quite sure OSF is mounting a rebuttal to my opinion written above.

OSF's usual modus operandi is to recruit a well known Peoria person to write an article stating why I am all wrong. Who would want this job to defend OSF's neglect of Haitian kids who are dying as a result of OSF's neglect?

Someone will run with the ball for OSF and I will post their article when it appears.

The host families for these Haitian kids in the Peoria area are very afraid of OSF...and for good reason. Much of the Peoria community is afraid of OSF...even big donors to OSF would like to see Mr. Steffen replaced, but their own medical problems make them think twice about going public.

In the meantime, I need to find medical centers to accept Jenny and Henri. They don't have the same time or resources as does OSF.