When Haiti reached out to the world for aid in January, many members of the University and Ann Arbor communities heeded the call. In the months since then, University Health Service workers and students have continued to help the relief effort.

Now — thousands of miles from the houses laying in rubble and the disaster victims they rushed to help — those who have returned are discussing their experiences in the country, in an effort to advocate for the cause and encourage students and community members not to forget the extent of the disaster.

Tim Hausler, an LSA freshman who accompanied his father to Haiti to be a part of the relief effort, said nothing prepared him for driving through a city where nine out of every ten homes had been destroyed.

“Even after seeing all the newsreels and disaster coverage, it doesn’t really click how bad it is,” he said. “But then when you get there and you make the drive from the capital to the epicenter of the earthquake, you see so much destruction.”

Hausler said he feels nervous that now, as disaster has begun to strike other areas and the media has been focusing less on Haiti, students will think the problem has been resolved.

“We cannot forget about what is going on,” he said. “They need us now just as much as before.”

The disaster is especially startling because among the intense damages are some houses that have withstood the quake, according to Hari Conjeevaram, associate professor of internal medicine. He added that even those who haven’t lost their homes are residing close to the destruction.

“There is so much displacement there, but in between that are people whose houses are completely fine,” he said. “So, in the midst of all this rubble, people are living as part of the destruction.”

Conjeevram said despite the devastation, the Haitian people he encountered remained hopeful.

“The Haitians live in so much faith because it is such a big part of their culture,” he said. “People really smile, go to church every Sunday and sing songs in the middle of the night.”

Sacha Montas, a University emergency medicine resident, said though the Haitian people he encountered were exhausted by all of the loss they had endured, he sensed a strong appreciation for his services.

“People were tremendously grateful about our presence, which was extremely rewarding,” he said.

For the University members and other relief workers, making the trip to Haiti was only half the battle. Once situated amidst the rubble, they still needed to figure out how to make sure those who needed aid were able to get it.

“One of the biggest challenges initially was figuring out where to even go or how to help,” Montas said.

However, according to many who visited, infrastructure is improving as private clinics open their doors to help the needy and relief teams from different countries are working closely together.

Marie Lozon, division director of pediatric emergency medicine at the University, recently returned from a relief trip deployed by the University aboard the United States Navy ship “The Comfort.”

Lozon said she was lucky to be part of a crew that was very efficient.

“We were so well prepared by the University Health Services,” she said. “We had the right shots, the right medication, the right paperwork, the right preparation.”

Patients were brought aboard the ship — which housed the only working CT scanner in Haiti and a number of intensive care units and operating rooms — by either boat or helicopter, Lozon said.

Lozon stressed that working so closely with the Navy gave her a newfound appreciation for its work.

“I’m not that familiar with the military; I’m a U of M Ann Arbor hippie,” she said.