Frederica Freyberg:
But first the topic that is in the minds of people in Wisconsin and around the world — Haiti. As many as 50,000 people are dead as a result of Tuesday's earthquake in Haiti. President Obama has pledged $100 million of American relief funds. Recovery teams are being assembled tonight around the world, including by organizations in Wisconsin. Friends for Health in Haiti is a Milwaukee-based organization founded in 2006 by Dr. Catherine Wolf. Dr. Wolf has practiced medicine in Haiti on and off for the past 20 years. Flights permitting on Tuesday, she's returning to work at a clinic in the mountains on Haiti’s southern peninsula. She’s in Florida tonight and joins us by phone. Doctor, thank you very much for doing so.

Catherine Wolf:
Thank you for allowing me to be here.

Frederica Freyberg:
Having spent so much time in Haiti, what is your reaction to the situation there, to the news images you've seen in the last few days?

Catherine Wolf:
Well, I think it's just devastating, not only to those of us who know Haiti but to those who are not familiar with the country. The infrastructure in Haiti at its best is poor, and this has decimated the entire city of Port-Au-Prince especially.

Frederica Freyberg:
Your intention is to return to your primary care duties away from Port-Au-Prince, but might you be called to help in your capacity as a physician in that city?

Catherine Wolf:
Yes. Actually, there are many people who are fleeing Port-Au-Prince, as you can imagine, going back to the towns where they're from. What I would like to do is to go first out to Jeremie, where our home is and where our clinic is located, and assess the situation there and make sure everyone is okay. And then gather some supplies and if the need is there for me to go back to Port-Au-Prince, I would offer my services back in the area closer to the earthquake.

Frederica Freyberg:
I understand speaking of supplies that the need for medical supplies is dire. Will you be able to actually bring any in potentially?

Catherine Wolf:
Well, I do plan to bring some in with me. Generally each time we travel from the U.S., we bring as many supplies as we can with us. We anticipate that for those of us who are in isolated areas of the country, we will have a significant problem in the months to come with supplies because our medications and supplies usually come from Port-Au-Prince and we may need to find alternate means of supply for our medications, even to run our clinic.

Frederica Freyberg:
Have you been able to have any kind of successful communication with the people on the ground that you work with in Haiti?

Catherine Wolf:
Very little communication. I have a few friends who do have Internet connection, and we've gotten some news from them. Phones are not working, getting into the country. We've had a couple of people contact us from Haiti calling out. And so we've gotten some news. We do have some people we have not heard from, some friends and other members in Port-Au-Prince. So we're quite concerned about them as well.

Frederica Freyberg:
What will this disaster do to the people of Haiti, already so impoverished?

Catherine Wolf:
Well, you know, Haitians are just incredibly resilient people. They've been through a lot, and they have capacity for survival. They tend to make do with what they have and really have very few complaints, even when they're in difficult situations. But this is just devastating, and I think everyone in the country is just in a state of shock. This will take a long, long time to recover from.

Frederica Freyberg:
Dr. Wolf, we wish you the very best in your work there. Thank you very much for joining us.

Catherine Wolf:
Well, thank you very much for having me.