In the thick of epidemic catastrophe, can architecture help to heal? Dr. Jean William Pape, a Haitian infectious disease specialist, believes it can. He has dedicated the last 35 years to combating diarrheal diseases that harm and kill his nation’s poor, and along side his colleagues at Les Centres GHESKIO, has achieved remarkable improvements in community health in Haiti and beyond.
On Jan 12, 2010 an earthquake rocked the capital of Port-au-Prince, killing over 150,000 people and all but destroying the city's already weakened public infrastructure. GHESKIO staff triaged and cared for thousands of injured and sick following the disaster using donated military cots and tents.
Just nine months later, as the country was beginning to recover, Dr. Pape’s worst nightmare came true. An outbreak of cholera swept the city's crowded neighborhoods and relief camps. GHESKIO’s staff now braved a whole new challenge - how to combat one of the worst cholera outbreaks in over a century in a place with almost no sanitation infrastructure. On the front line of an international effort to stem the tide of an epidemic, GHESKIO used every means at their disposal to combat the disease, including innovations like world’s first mid-outbreak cholera vaccination campaign.
Asking what else could be done, Dr. Pape invited the architecture firm MASS Design Group to help address the underlying problems that had allowed such an outbreak to occur in the first-place.
Together they envisioned a facility that would not only create a healthy and dignified environment for patients, but would act to disrupt the vicious cycle of infection taking place through the re-contamination of water by cholera waste. Moreover, it would be built by Haitians using locally available materials, maximizing its social and economic impact on the surrounding community.
Design that Heals is an uplifting story about leadership, innovation, and human resilience. As the building comes together, it reveals a powerful statement of what seemingly disparate fields can accomplish when they work together. As Dr. Pape achieves remarkable victories over such a complex health issue through an integrated approach to health and wellness, viewers are prompted to ask - what more can we all do?
Runtime:
00:23:53
Information for the Audience:
Directors: Thatcher Bean, Alan Ricks
Writers:
Producers: MASS Design Group
Key cast:
In the thick of epidemic catastrophe, can architecture help to heal? Dr. Jean William Pape, a Haitian infectious disease specialist, believes it can. He has dedicated the last 35 years to combating diarrheal diseases that harm and kill his nation’s poor, and along side his colleagues at Les Centres GHESKIO, has achieved remarkable improvements in community health in Haiti and beyond.
On Jan 12, 2010 an earthquake rocked the capital of Port-au-Prince, killing over 150,000 people and all but destroying the city's already weakened public infrastructure. GHESKIO staff triaged and cared for thousands of injured and sick following the disaster using donated military cots and tents.
Just nine months later, as the country was beginning to recover, Dr. Pape’s worst nightmare came true. An outbreak of cholera swept the city's crowded neighborhoods and relief camps. GHESKIO’s staff now braved a whole new challenge - how to combat one of the worst cholera outbreaks in over a century in a place with almost no sanitation infrastructure. On the front line of an international effort to stem the tide of an epidemic, GHESKIO used every means at their disposal to combat the disease, including innovations like world’s first mid-outbreak cholera vaccination campaign.
Asking what else could be done, Dr. Pape invited the architecture firm MASS Design Group to help address the underlying problems that had allowed such an outbreak to occur in the first-place.
Together they envisioned a facility that would not only create a healthy and dignified environment for patients, but would act to disrupt the vicious cycle of infection taking place through the re-contamination of water by cholera waste. Moreover, it would be built by Haitians using locally available materials, maximizing its social and economic impact on the surrounding community.
Design that Heals is an uplifting story about leadership, innovation, and human resilience. As the building comes together, it reveals a powerful statement of what seemingly disparate fields can accomplish when they work together. As Dr. Pape achieves remarkable victories over such a complex health issue through an integrated approach to health and wellness, viewers are prompted to ask - what more can we all do?
Directors: Thatcher Bean, Alan Ricks
Writers:
Producers: MASS Design Group
Key cast:
Categories:
Student project: No
Completion date: 2016-09-15
Shooting format: Digital
Aspect ratio: 16:9
Film color: Color
First-time filmmaker: No
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Country:
Language: