February 5, 2010: A TaiwanICDF Mobile Medical Mission (MMM) departs for Haiti today as part of Taiwan's uninterrupted medical assistance to the disaster-stricken country since the earthquake on January 12.
This is the third group of medical volunteers to leave Taiwan for Haiti. Since the two-week mission will remain overseas during the course of the New Year festival, this operation represents a particularly significant sacrifice on the part of mission members, who have expressed a clear willingness to be away from their families in order to bring humanitarian relief to those in great need.
Members of this MMM have over 10 years of experience in the field, including in less-developed countries in Africa. Led by Dr. Chen Chi-fu, the 15-member team includes an infectious disease specialist, pediatricians and surgeons; and in total comprises nine doctors, three nurses, two pharmacists and a medical support specialist. As elite, veteran members of previous tours, these medical professionals are well aware of the importance of health care to people in developing countries. The New Year festival is a special time of year for the Taiwanese, and in addition to working with a professionalism common to all TaiwanICDF MMMs, mission members have remarked that they will turn thoughts of their loved ones to their advantage in their show of compassion to Haitian patients.
Given the essential need for international organizations to coordinate their response – so as to limit outbreaks of disease, and to rebuild Haiti's crippled health care systems effectively – the mission will work closely with PAHO (WHO) on arrival, in order to arrange priorities and coordinate its assignments.
MMMs are a regular feature of TaiwanICDF operations, forming one strand of its work with the International Healthcare Cooperation Strategic Alliance (IHCSA). Under this collective banner, the TaiwanICDF coordinates with 37 Taiwanese hospitals and health care institutions to dispatch volunteer doctors, nurses, pharmacists and medical specialists on short-term missions to Taiwan's partner countries. A total of 72 MMMs have now served in 24 countries since December 2005, treating more than 12,000 patients.

• Update: 2010/12/31
• Hits:302