Overview

Haiti HAS a Hospital

Based in Haiti’s Lower Artibonite Valley, the 200-bed Hôpital Albert Schweitzer Haiti is the only 24/7 full-service hospital serving a population roughly the size of Anaheim, California — more than 350,000 people.

HAS has an extensive community health department including four community health centers and 49 community health workers. This infrastructure enables HAS to bring quality primary health care closer to those people living in remote and often mountainous areas, who would otherwise not be able to access needed services.

Our mission is to collaborate with the people of the Artibonite Valley as they strive to improve their health and quality of life.

Our History

The story of Hôpital Albert Schweitzer Haiti begins with a LIFE magazine article published in October 1947 about the medical missionary and philosopher Dr. Albert Schweitzer. Dr. Schweitzer’s commitment to bringing medical care to equatorial Africa had earned him the title, according to LIFE, of “the greatest man in the world.”

On the other side of the world, Larry Mellon—an heir of the Mellon banking and industrial fortune and then a successful cattle rancher in Arizona—was so transformed after reading this article that he felt moved to become a physician in a similarly challenged part of the world. From the beginning, Larry’s wife, Gwen Grant Mellon, completely supported the idea.

Dr. Larry and Gwen Mellon came to Haiti in the 1950’s with the conviction that all human beings are deserving of compassion, care, and respect. They felt the Lower Artibonite Valley was where the greatest need intersected with the greatest potential to help.

Hôpital Albert Schweitzer Haiti opened its doors on June 26, 1956 in Deschapelles. Named in honor of Dr. Schweitzer, the hospital, with its modern facilities and services, became a model for effective, compassionate healthcare in the developing world.

For over 65 years, HAS has been at the forefront of caring for many of Haiti’s most vulnerable and medically fragile citizens, including infants, children, and their mothers. We are committed to confronting the most pressing, complex, and evolving challenges facing Haiti today.