As she often jokingly notes, Marie-Claude Rigaud’s efforts at humility have been seriously tested over these last few months.   Adding to the awards and verbal recognition by Haitian compatriots and organizations, such as AMHE Florida Chapter, for her initiative and leadership in founding Rebati Sante Mentale, Dr Rigaud has been the recipient of several awards from American colleagues.  
Dr Rigaud was nominated by her colleagues and received the 2014 American Psychiatric Association Assembly Profile Of Courage.   This prestigious award  is accorded to an APA  member “who has taken, at the risk of his/her  professional status and ethical stand against intimidating pressure for the good of patient care and in keeping with APA principles of Ethics;  a member in good standing who has performed a deed on behalf of a patient, patient group, patient care, or an ethical principle of our Association;  The deed involved some personal risk (reputation, financial) and/ or safety;  actions performed are worthy of consideration  and recognition by the membership.  The actions should served as an example to the membership of commendable ethical behavior worth of emulation.”    
More recently, on May 16, 2015,  at the APA annual meeting in Toronto, Marie-Claude received the American Psychiatric Foundation Award for Advancing Minority Mental Health on behalf of Rebati Sante Mentale, the organization she founded following the 2010 earthquake.   
On May 19, 2015, at the APA George Trajan Award lecture,  Drs Nyapati Rao and Fructuoso Irigoyen, leaders of APA International Medical Graduates, presented Dr Rigaud with the 2015 TARJAN AWARD, in recognition for her “the significant work on behalf of international medical graduates and their integration into American Psychiatry.”   Dr Rao emphasized the point that Dr Rigaud had also served and led the IMG group at the American Medical Association (AMA) as member and during her 2 terms as delegate to the AMA House of Delegates.  
Dr Rigaud plans to continue to lead Rebati Sante Mentale in pursuing the organization’s objectives of improving the mental health system for Haitians, at home and the diaspora.

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Invitation to the AMHE Annual Convention
http://amhe.org/convention.html

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Sickle Cell Clinic Project in Léogane, Haiti

The Association of Haitian Physicians Abroad (AMHE) has launched its first crowdfunding project to build a Sickle Cell Clinic in Léogane, Haiti by 2016. We believe that giving health is building wealth. In this way, the people affected by sickle cell can hope to live healthier lives and overcome the throes of poverty. (More)

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