TheBakersfieldCalifornian.com

Bakersfield cardiologist Dr. Vinod Kumar knew he would be affected by the devastation and poverty he witnessed during his trip to Haiti last month.

But the director of The Heart Center didn't know it would change his life for the better.

"I got so much more in Haiti than what I gave," he said. "It was an amazing experience."

What he gave was a full week of physically exhausting yet spiritually uplifting medical care to dozens of sick and injured residents of Haiti's earthquake-damaged capital, Port-au-Prince.

Unlike his local practice where he specializes in helping patients suffering from heart disease, Kumar was called upon to exercise his skills to treat a wide variety of ailments.

So many of Haiti's residents have never received basic health care, Kumar said.

There was 7-year-old Sebastian, whose right leg had been amputated after he was pulled from beneath the rubble after being trapped for two days. The boy's entire family had been killed and he needed love and reassurance, not just medical care.

When Kumar was asked to assist in the Cesarean birth of a premature infant, it seemed to connect him once again to the basic tenets of his profession -- not to mention his faith.

"You read about enlightenment," he said, his eyes gleaming. "One scripture says it takes only a moment."

For Kumar, that moment came when he guided the tiny head of the newborn into the tropical air of his island home. Though he was surrounded by images of destruction and suffering, the birth of the tiny child seemed an affirmation of something beyond one's everyday experience.

"I was feeling the presence of God," he said.

Kumar first felt the urge to go to Haiti in the weeks following the massive January earthquake. Eventually he reached Loma Linda Hospital and University, which had been coordinating relief efforts and medical missions to Haiti for five years.

Kumar is one of hundreds of health care professionals from across the United States who have volunteered to serve through Loma Linda's Haiti program, said Dustin Jones, a spokesman for Loma Linda.

By coordinating the trips to the 70-bed Adventist hospital in Port-au-Prince, the organization can maximize the usefulness of each doctor, each dentist, each nurse who volunteers to help.

Nneka Odeluga, a physician assistant who works with Kumar at The Heart Center, said she too is determined to go to Haiti. Not only was she moved by the images and stories Kumar brought back, she already has extensive experience providing similar services as a volunteer in Nigeria.

Medical professionals must educate even as they treat patients in developing countries, she said.

"There are so many misconceptions about what causes illness," she said. "It's a challenge, but the need is so great."

As Kumar has shared his Haiti experience with local patients and colleagues, he's been amazed by how his stories seem to inspire others to take action.

Earlier this year, the India Association of the San Joaquin Valley, of which Kumar is a member, raised $40,000 to donate to Doctors Without Borders. Kumar hopes others will be inspired to help in any way they can with what he believes will be a decades-long effort to rebuild and rehabilitate Haiti.

Meanwhile, Kumar says he will never forget his week in Haiti. And he wants to go back.

"This was a week I will always remember," he said. "It has become such a part of me."