How do you feel about the latest to befall Haiti and is there anything more we can do besides donate money?

Last night I learned of the terrible earthquake that shook Haiti yesterday around 5 pm (check out cnn.com now for the story and photographs). I stayed up all night trying to get any news updates and calling my friends and their families. One of my good friend’s family is in Haiti and he could not get in contact with them and continues to fear they’re all dead. I was greatly shook up – in some ways I am more familiar with the Haitian community here in NYC than any other – so many of my patients have been affected. I immediately texted “Haiti” to 90999 to donate $10 to Red Cross for relief efforts and donated further as instructed here

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2010/01/12/thoughts-and-prayers-haiti

but this all feels as if it’s not enough – this country is one of the poorest in the world, there has been so much disease, poverty and political instability there (since 2004, a U.N. ordered peace keeping mission, many of who are unaccounted for now, have been keeping some semblance of order after removing former President Aristide)...it was previously said that 60% of structures in Haiti are not in any acceptable condition and, obviously, that means that buildings are so much more susceptible to destruction…

What I’m trying to say is that while I am aware that this is a natural disaster that none of us could have prevented, the death toll would have been lower had the country not been in such a terrible condition to begin with…and as the U.S. has a convoluted history with Haiti for decades, this is something we all must reflect on…

What are you thoughts?