Amref Health Africa is a Kenyan-based non-governmental organization focused on providing community and environmental healthcare to countries in Africa. It is considered one of the most prominent health NGOs in Africa.
History
Originally known as
The Flying Doctors of East Africa, Amref was founded in 1957 by Sir
Archibald McIndoe
Sir Archibald Hector McIndoe (4 May 1900 – 11 April 1960) was a New Zealand plastic surgeon who worked for the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. He improved the treatment and rehabilitation of badly burned aircrew.
Early life
Arc ...
,
Sir Michael Wood and Dr. Thomas D. Rees. While its original focus was to provide health services to patients in remote areas, they began providing education to other Africa-based health workers as early as the 1970s.
[Nyambegera, Stephen Morangi; Gicheru, Caroline Njambi (2016). “''Extrinsic and Intrinsic Factors Influencing Employee Motivation: Lessons from AMREF Health Africa in Kenya''”. International Journal of Business and Social Research (Volume 6, Issue 9)]
During the 1980s and 90s, Amref expanded in scope, collaborating with other international aid agencies and working directly with the Ministries of Health in Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda on community health based projects, with a focus on the prevention of HIV/AIDS.
In the 2000s and 2010s, Amref performed thousands of reconstructive surgeries on Africans with
cleft lip and cleft palate
A cleft lip contains an opening in the upper lip that may extend into the nose. The opening may be on one side, both sides, or in the middle. A cleft palate occurs when the palate (the roof of the mouth) contains an opening into the nose. The ...
(CLP) alongside the non-profit organization
Smile Train
Smile Train is a nonprofit organization and charity providing corrective surgery for children with cleft lips and palates. Headquartered in New York City and founded in 1999, Smile Train provides free corrective cleft surgery in 87 countries, ...
.
The Flying Doctors of East Africa (film)
In 1969, Amref was the subject of a documentary short by director
Werner Herzog
Werner Herzog (; né Stipetić; born 5 September 1942) is a German filmmaker, actor, opera director, and author. Regarded as a pioneer of New German Cinema, his films often feature ambitious protagonists with impossible dreams, people with unusu ...
named "
The Flying Doctors of East Africa." This was still the name of the organization at the time. Shooting took place on location in Tanzania and Kenya. According to Herzog, the film was successful in bringing publicity to the organization in its early days.
Further reading
Rees, Thomas D (2002). ''
Daktari: A Surgeons Adventures with the Flying Doctors of East Africa''. Santa Fe: Sunstone Press.
Wood, Michael (2016). ''No Turning Back: A Flying Doctor's Adventure in Africa''. Acrodile Publishing Ltd.
See also
*
Clinical officer
A clinical officer (CO) is a gazetted officer who is qualified and licensed to practice medicine.
In Kenya the basic training for clinical officers starts after high school and takes four or five years ending on successful completion of a one- ...
s, healthcare providers in
Sub-saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa is the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lie south of the Sahara. These include Central Africa, East Africa, Southern Africa, and West Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the list of sovereign states and ...
*
Healthcare in Kenya
Kenya's health care system is structured in a step-wise manner so that complicated cases are referred to a higher level. Gaps in the system are filled by private and church run units.
* Level 1 Community Health Units
* Level 2 Dispensaries a ...
Leadership
* Group Chief Executive Officer:
Githinji Gitahi,
* Amref UK CEO: Camilla Knox-Peebles
* Amref USA CEO: Robert Kelty
* Amref West Africa regional manager: Awa Dieye Dieng
* Amref Kenya country director:
Ndirangu Wanjuki
References
External links
Daktari: A Surgeon's Adventures with the Flying Doctors of East Africa
{{Authority control
Health in Africa
Health charities in England
Charities based in London
Healthcare in Kenya
Religious organizations
Foreign charities operating in Kenya
Archibald McIndoe