When investing in the infrastructure of hospitals and health facilities at our country operation sites, MedGlobal’s goal is to provide well-resourced and well-connected places where local communities can receive quality care. Well-designed buildings and practical equipment are critical, but good health infrastructure also requires capable human resources, powerful data collection systems, and effective tools for communication and coordination with other health facilities and stakeholders.
At the foundational level, MedGlobal offers facility refurbishment and construction for infrastructure damaged by climate change-related events, war, and other emergencies and disasters. For example, we responded quickly after the August 2021 earthquake in Haiti, rehabilitating a local hospital in Jeremy so that patients could once again receive care.
We build and donate equipment that functional, yet under-resourced facilities need in order to improve their patient care. For example, MedGlobal built four large-scale oxygen generators since the start of the COVID pandemic–two in Syria, one in Sudan, and one in India–and we are planning one more in Yemen.
When possible, we donate cutting-edge technological equipment to help facilities provide the most efficient and effective care possible. For example, we have donated Butterfly iQ devices — portable ultrasound machines that can plug into smartphones — to health facilities in seven countries (Bangladesh, Colombia, Mexico, Pakistan, Palestine, Ukraine, and Yemen), along with providing training on how to use them.
Along with needs-based training like our point of care ultrasound training, MedGlobal ensures that health facilities have capable human resources by supporting staff salaries. We continue to support staff at underfunded facilities located in areas where health care providers are scarce, such as areas affected by war and camps for refugees and internally displaced people.
In all our infrastructure projects, MedGlobal considers resiliency and sustainability. We aim for our interventions to remain relevant despite the ever-changing nature of the complex humanitarian emergencies in which we work. To achieve this, all of our projects are accompanied by a thoughtful exit strategy, which could involve activities such as training locals on engineering techniques to maintain equipment.
