News release

Flooding victims in Bolivia receive medicines and supplies from HPIC

MONTREAL - (May 10, 2010) - An emergency shipment of donated medicines and medical supplies arrived in La Paz, Bolivia in late April to help victims of the annual flooding.

"There are major floods and landslides every spring in several parts of the country and we have been working with the Bolivian Ministry of Health to plan a response," said Glen Shepherd, President of Health Partners International of Canada (HPIC). "We are thankful for the financial donations from a variety of Canadians that have made this possible."

HPIC pulled together almost $160,000 in donated medicines, including pain relief and antibiotics, from seven pharmaceutical and healthcare products companies in response to a needs list supplied by the ministry. The project was supported by Bolivian-Canadian doctor Ivar Mendez, head of neurosurgery at the QEII Health Sciences Centre in Halifax. The Canadian Co-operation Office in La Paz provided on-site assistance.

Bolivia is one of the Canadian International Development Agency's (CIDA) countries of focus. It is the poorest country in South America. According to CIDA, "one out of five Bolivians lives on less than US$1.25/day, the most vulnerable being women and children living in rural areas, as well as indigenous people who make up 65 percent of the 9.7 million population."

"The flooding makes life much more difficult in Bolivia," Shepherd said. "We were approached by the Embassy of Bolivia in Canada to help and we are very optimistic about our ability to work there in a sustained way going forward."

This is HPIC's first emergency shipment to Bolivia and also serves as a pilot project, which will strengthen HPIC's relationships and fine-tune logistics to help increase access to medicine in Bolivia.

About HPIC

Health Partners International of Canada is a humanitarian not-for-profit relief and development organization dedicated to improving access to medicine and enhancing health in the developing world. HPIC contributes to well-being by providing donated essential medicines, supplies and vaccines, building national health sector capacities, and responding to emergencies and health threats. We partner with a network of ministries of health, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and healthcare professionals, with pharmaceutical and healthcare product companies, and with Canadian government departments; and we count on the financial support of individual donors, foundations and corporations. Because of our unique model, HPIC multiplies every donated dollar to provide, without discrimination, at least $10 of free medical aid.

For more information contact:
Christina Parsons
Director, Corporate Communications
514-822-1112, ext. 119
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