Hurricane Matthew, one of the strongest hurricanes seen in recent years, has had a devastating impact on Haiti and damaged the U.S. Southeast coast as well. To provide immediate support for those in need, Abbott's foundation, the Abbott Fund, provided $150,000 in grants to two of our longtime partners to advance relief efforts.

The Abbott Fund provided $75,000 in funding to help our longstanding partner in Haiti, Partners In Health (PIH), to meet critical health needs in the country. In the U.S., the Abbott Fund provided a $75,000 grant to the American Red Cross to help provide emergency shelter, food, blankets and supplies to thousands of people across Florida, Georgia, North and South Carolina, and Virginia.

For more information on how Partners In Health is addressing the impact of Hurricane Matthew, and to donate to advance their important work in Haiti. And to donate to the American Red Cross to help support their hurricane relief efforts in the U.S., click here.

Haiti relief efforts focused on fighting malnutrition

In Haiti, the Abbott Fund grant will be used to ramp up local production of PIH's Nourimanba, a life-saving treatment for severe malnutrition that is provided to children at PIH's healthcare facilities in Haiti. Nourimanba is produced by PIH's sister organization, Zanmi Lasante, at the Nourimanba Production Facility (SPN, or Sant Prodiksyon Nourimanba in Haitian Creole) in Central Haiti.

Opened in 2013, the SPN facility was built through a partnership between Abbott, the Abbott Fund, PIH and ZL, with the close involvement of Abbott scientists, engineers and other experts. Built to withstand hurricanes, the facility has quickly resumed operations to continue production of Nourimanba. The Abbott Fund grant will be used to purchase the necessary raw materials and supplies to expand production in the coming days, in order to meet the expected increased demand for Nourimanba following the hurricane.