[afro-nets] Mother-Child Medical Center and healthcare in rural Africa

["Neema Mgana" <nmgana@yahoo.com>]

Mother-Child Medical Center and healthcare in rural Africa
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Dear all,

The Mother-Child Medical Center strives to improve the health of 
residents in rural Singida, with an emphasis on women of reproductive 
age and children under the age of five years, by building, staffing and 
operating a maternal and child medical center in the village of Ipuli, 
Tanzania.

The center is planned to operate in August 2006 and provide dental, 
ophthalmology, pharmacy, and laboratory services. Alongside the center 
will be a medical training center for approximately 300 students and a 
primary school for local children. 

The most urgent factors preventing women in Ipuli from accessing 
healthcare are cost of services and distance to a health facility. The 
nearest hospital is Haydoum hospital in Arusha District, located 81 
kilometers from Ipuli. It is common that many sick die on the way to 
the hospital- including young children with malaria and women with 
complicated pregnancies. The center will also focus on health education 
and prevention (i.e. HIV/AIDS prevention).

In order to reduce death and disability of women and children, quality 
maternal and child services must be available and accessible. The 
Mother-Child Medical Center, training center and primary school will
operate as an example of a comprehensive approach to meeting health and 
education needs of rural populations. Plans are set to duplicate this 
model in Tanzania and in other African countries. 

The innovation of the Mother-Child Medical Center is that it is 
directed by the community of Ipuli. The need for a medical center was 
made by the community in 2005 and they subsequently donated 10 acres of 
land for this purpose. The construction of the medical center, training 
center, and primary school is lead by a local board. Funding for the 
project has been made possible by companies and individuals in and out 
of Tanzania. The entire community of Ipuli and residents in the Singida 
region are enthusiastic about the development of this project, which is 
being called a "Rural Center of Excellence" due to it's focus on 
providing both comprehensive health and education services in one 
location. 

To learn more about or partner in this project, please e-mail 
mailto:info@motherchildmedical.org or call +1-831-419-1763 in the US.

Thank you,
Neema

--
Neema Mgana
Forum for Global Action
mailto:nmgana@yahoo.com
http://www.forumforglobalaction.org