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PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — In 2013, Provo native Erika Childs traveled to Port-au-Prince, Haiti, to be a volunteer psychology professor for a couple of months. Two-and-a-half years later, she has made it her home.
Childs saw the huge need for mental health services and how no one was really doing anything about it. As a result, she started her own mental health center that focuses on mental health education, counseling services and more.
The Espere Mental Health Center is one of the only mental health centers in Haiti. There are two psychiatric hospitals where patients receive psychological services, but Childs said they are not ideal places to be.
"...In my opinion, sometimes being in a Haitian prison would be a better sentence than being put in the psychiatric hospital," Childs said.
The feedback Childs has received regarding her work over there is amazing, she said.
One of the women she has worked with is a mother of a child with Down syndrome. She wasn't aware of the condition, but when she started noticing her baby was acting differently than others, she saw a doctor.
The doctor told her she should have killed the baby when it was born, while her priest said she sins too much, so her sins made her baby crazy. Her neighbors told her it was a voodoo curse.
Childs said when they found the woman, she was considering abandoning the baby. Instead, Childs said they worked with her, offered support and connected her with other families raising children with special needs.
"It's amazing to see the difference that's made," Childs said. "She's starting to be more involved in her community. She's managed to find a little job, so that she can take care of her child."
Basic necessities are very expensive, so things like consistent electricity and running water aren't a reality for some Haitians.
"There are no jobs ... but people work so hard," Childs said. "Every day, women are scraping together whatever they can to go to the markets and sell their things, so that they can afford to send their children to school."
During the presidential election season, there is an increase in violence and general insecurity.
Childs said that since moving there, she's tried to focus on the things that matter most.
"I could get stressed about the amount of bugs that live in my house, or the inconvenience of having to go to the well every time I want to ... take a bath from a cold bucket of water, but realizing that I have a place to live, that I do have access to water, all of the other things, the nonessential things, just kind of don't take unnecessary time anymore."
There are some ways people in Utah can help Childs with her efforts in Haiti. Those who wish can donate money on the center's website.* Childs is also looking for mental health workers, social workers and those with specific skills to travel to Haiti to provide training to the professionals there.
*KSL.com does not assure that the money deposited to the account will be applied for the benefit of the persons named as beneficiaries. If you are considering a deposit to the account, you should consult your own advisors and otherwise proceed at your own risk.
