Haiti Health Facts

In 1982, FCLH founder Estelle Dubuisson, then a Medical Technologist, found that 90% of the Lascahobas children she tested for parasites had intestinal infestation and malaria!

In 1984, Ms. Dubuisson conducted a follow up of her study and tested the rest of the children of Lascahobas for parasites as well as TB, Sickle Cell and anemia. The results of her second study revealed that:

• 70% of children still had intestinal infestation
• 80% had malaria
• 24% had the Sickle Cell trait
• 2% had the Sickle Cell disease
• 10% tested positive for TB
• 80% suffered from anemia

Other facts about the state of health and quality of life in Haiti, from World Bank reports:

• Only 25% of population has access to safe drinking water.
• Although vaccination coverage has increased in recent years, it remains one of the lowest in the world at about 25% of children.
• Infant mortality is 72 per 1,000 live births, almost twice the regional average.
• Malnutrition affects about half the children under the age of five.
• With approximately five births per woman of childbearing age or a total population growth rate of 2.3% a year, the Haitian population is expected to double from 1995 to2025.
• Together, public and private health spending totals about $150 million or $21 per capita as compared to $38 in Sub-Sahara Africa, and $202 in Latin America.
• Life expectancy is 57 years compared with 69 years in Latin America.
• Half the population of Haiti earns $60 or less per year (median income).