Summer Archives

Catherine Brown Jinja, Uganda - Foundation for Sustainable Development - Njeru Health Center III

This summer I worked at Njeru Health Center III, a clinic just outside Jinja, Uganda through the Foundation for Sustainable Development (FSD). After intensive community and facility assessment, I talked with staff and identified two major needs at the clinic: lack of funding for facility level improvements and lack of sufficient maternity supplies. In terms of funding, I formed a fundraising team, which will identify pressing needs at the center and secure the funds to address those needs. The team consists of the senior clinical officer and five community members all invested in health. With the help of local experts, I created a manual and ran a series of workshops that covered grant writing, local resource mobilization, and online fundraising, among other topics. In terms of maternity, the midwife compiled a list of needed supplies and I identified a local supplier. I fundraised through connections in the U.S., which was enough to vastly improve the maternity ward. We purchased medical supplies, a new wall, a new water system, hand-washing stations and much more. These improvements created a sense of pride in the clinic and were used as an example to the fundraising team, hopefully fueling future efforts for improvement.