Palin traveled to the Caribbean nation over the weekend with the Rev. Franklin Graham, two family members and Fox News’s Greta Van Susteren. In an interview with Van Susteren aired Monday night, Palin said she hopes her visit will refocus American attention.

“It lets us see opportunity to help,” Palin said of her trip, “and to send a message back to help.”

Palin applauded workers who continue to provide assistance in Haiti nearly a year after a major earthquake devastated some of the country’s most populated areas. She paid special tribute to Graham’s relief organization, Samaritan’s Purse.

Palin said the weekend visit was “quite sobering and puts things into perspective.” She urged those “who are more privileged and able to share” to contribute to charities doing work in Haiti.

The interview with Van Susteren had no overtly political content, though the Haiti trip and a planned visit to Britain and Israel in the near future provide an opportunity for the former governor to obtain more foreign policy experience as she considers a possible 2012 run for the White House.

The Fox program showed several positive scenes of Palin, including her participation in an event with Graham in which his group handed out Christmas presents to Haitian children.

“We see those who truly are committed to the cause, they’re still here, they’re still helping,” Palin said. “And they need the word out there that there is dire need here in Haiti.”

Van Susteren has posted numerous items about the trip and pictures of Palin on her blog over the past two days. And though the segment did not have political overtones, Van Susteren concluded her report by defending Palin over a minor controversy stirred by an Associated Press photo that incorrectly identified Palin’s daughter Bristol as a hair stylist.

“Here’s one story about the trip you might want to hear,” Van Susteren said at the end of the humanitarian-focused report.

“Did you see this AP picture of Gov. Palin?” she asked. “The caption read Governor Palin has her hair done during a visit to a cholera treatment center.”

“Many websites went wild hammering Gov. Palin for bringing a hair stylist to Haiti,” the Fox host said. “The person is not a hair stylist; it is the governor’s daughter Bristol.”

Samaritan’s Purse, meanwhile, posted an eight-minute video clip of Graham and Palin delivering remarks to the press during their trip to Haiti.