Florida A&M University will become the first HBCU to send a team to Haiti, when a group leaves this week on behalf of the College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.

Henry Lewis, dean of the college, will be traveling to Haiti along with three or four pharmacy faculty members and two nurse practitioners from the School of Nursing. The team intends to provide medication, medical supplies and pharmaceutical care services for earthquake victims in Haiti.

Due to liability concerns, senior doctoral pharmacy students are unable to take the trip. The team will set up three tents with computers and generators and help assist with the other clinics in passing out prescriptions.


Approximately $50,000 in medical supplies will be taken over to Haiti.

“We have received contributions from different organizations here in Tallahassee,” said Lewis.
Leon County Sheriff Larry Campbell, thge Leon County Court Clerk Bob Inzer and others donated medical supplies.

The team plans to leave on Feb. 13, with the approval of The Board of Governors of the state university system of Florida. With their approval, the team will establish a rotation schedule consisting of approximately three months for the continuity of pharmacy services.
Lewis said funding for the trip is already taken care of.

Raymond Joseph, the U.S. ambassador to Haiti, will make the arrangements for the team to travel directly to Haiti.

“We are replicating what we did during the time of the hurricane in 2004,” said Lewis.
Some of the pharmacists and practitioners on the relief team consist of Haitians and people fluent in Creole.