Doctors Continue Work in Haiti
PHILLIPS: Well, we are not forgetting the people who need help in Haiti and neither are a very special group of doctors from Texas. They've been going to Haiti since January, giving hope to those who lost limbs in the earthquake. Victims stigmatized, not able to get jobs because they're missing a limb. Reporter Cima Mather looks at the great work that these doctors are doing.</s>CIMA MATHER, REPORTER (voice-over): Twenty-six-year-old Jean Pierre is known for her singing, devotional songs, she says, is what got her through after being trapped under the rubble for five days following the January 12th earthquake.</s>JEAN PIERRE (through translator): When she hollered no one heard him.</s>MATHER: As the days passed watched people die next to her.</s>PIERRE: After that, she just keep yelling Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, if you let me stay here too many days I know I will die. Please send those people back. This time I will make sure they do hear my voice.</s>MATHER: Lovely woke up in a makeshift hospital grateful to be alive, but in shock at the loss of her arm. (on camera): Thousands upon thousands of Haitians lost limbs in the earthquake partly because of the way that they were trapped under the rubble and the high number of infections.</s>DR.  TIM GUERAMY, ORTHOPEDIC SURGEON: At that time it was - it was just devastating story after devastating story where these amputations had been done in the middle of the street but a lot of them were done by surgeons and by people trying to get people out and the worse stories are people trying to get themselves out where they actually took whatever they had with them, they had with them to cut their own arm or limb off in order to get out of the rubble.</s>MATHER (voice-over): Dr. Tim Gueramy is among a group of central Texas doctors who have been going to Haiti weekly and rotating teams since the earthquake struck.</s>GUERAMY: That's okay, buddy. It's OK. I know.</s>MATHER: They set up what's known as the only sterile OR in the Port-au-Prince area. Orthopedic surgeons revised crude amputations and when possible tried to save infected limbs.</s>GUERAMY: Most of these patients that you see behind me, they were left at another hospital that could not help them and we brought them here and we can fix them and we can give them a chance at life.</s>MATHER: At this makeshift hospital you see numerous survivors who have not walked since the earthquake. (on camera): Do you think she'll be able to walk again?</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.</s>MATHER: But she just needs the proper care.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: she does need it because she will never walk if it stays like this.</s>MATHER: In Haiti, not only are those without limbs stigmatized, moving around in this country with a disability is difficult and most say the odds of getting a job which equates to survival become nearly impossible.</s>CHASE BROWN, PROSTHETIST: I just want to give them some hope. I think I want to show them, "hey, your life is not over. It can be full again."</s>MATHER: Central Texas doctors built this lab and recently started fitting Haitians with prosthetics. The first leg was built for Malene.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Maybe this week she walks. So with her left foot I want her to step in front with the prosthesis. That's better.</s>MATHER: Next, an arm is being made for Lovely.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's about having hope and having their life back.</s>MATHER: Cima Mather for CNN, Port-au-Prince, Haiti.</s>PHILLIPS: And just so you know, the Texas doctors are going beyond their lab in Port-au-Prince to train other Haitians so they can give the same high standard of prosthetic care. If you would like to learn more or help here's a web site you can go to www.austinhaiti.org. And when it comes to dealing with natural disasters, this guy's a pro. Retired Lieutenant General Russel Honore tackled post-Katrina, New Orleans and now he's sharing his pointers on how to clean up the gulf oil mess.