‘It’s not over for Haiti yet’

After following news accounts of the earthquake that devastated Haiti last month, Newport Beach pediatrician Sandy Lee wanted to help, but didn’t know how.

In the days immediately after the quake, emergency room doctors and trauma specialists were in demand, but not pediatricians.

A month and a half later, Haitian earthquake victims are facing health issues related to overcrowding and poor sanitation, Lee said.

“Even though I’m not a trauma surgeon or an ER doctor, a lot of these kinds of more general-medicine issues will start coming up because of the poor living conditions there,” she said. “The needs are changing as the weeks go by.”

The pediatrician, who has worked at the Newport Beach Coastal Kids pediatrics office for the past six years, will lead a team of eight medical professionals to Haiti this week through the Southern Baptist Disaster Relief organization.

In Haiti, Lee and her team will work in a community clinic operated by the Southern Baptist group.

“The drama of the earthquake has subsided, but the nation still has tremendous needs right now,” Lee said. “It’s not over for Haiti yet.”

Lee’s church is still accepting donations to buy medical supplies to send to Haiti.

Donations can be made at www.mosaic.org. Click on the giving link to make a contribution.