{UAH} AFRICAN AMERICAN CEO HELPING TO PROVIDE HEALTHCARE IN UGANDA

AFRICAN AMERICAN CEO HELPING TO PROVIDE HEALTHCARE IN UGANDA

I write this article in the hope of encouraging all those who despair about the status of healthcare in Uganda to step forward and do more than just talk about it.  To quote a popular saying, "Actions speak louder than words."

A week or so ago, I made mention of a phone call I received from a reporter who was writing an article on the literal absence of African Americans in the recently concluded US/Africa Leaders Summit and decided to do a little research about this myself.  I very quickly determined that the reporter indeed had reason for concern because I found very little information about the role and involvement of senior African American business leaders in the summit.

However, I did come across an article about the African American CEO of a major pharmaceutical company who is playing an active role in improving healthcare for thousands of women in Uganda.  Then lo and behold, this same CEO was named Corporate Executive of the Year by Black Enterprise Magazine and featured in their July/August publication.

Kenneth Frazier is the Chairman, President and CEO of Merck and Company, one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world with annual global sales of over $47 billion.  Merck was one of the roughly 80 or so major US companies that participated in the US/Africa Business Forum which was a key feature of the US/Africa Leaders Summit.

In an industry ruled by white men who are either scientists or salesmen, Frazier is an unlikely boss – not just a lawyer but an African-American who grew up in Philadelphia's inner city. His father was a janitor with a limited education and, Frazier says, "one of the most intelligent men I've met in my life."

Merck for Mothers (MUM) is a global effort by Merck and Company to save the lives of women in pregnancy and childbirth.  Merck helps brings better healthcare and innovative health solutions to millions of people across the developing – and developed – world, through groundbreaking public-private partnerships.

The MUM program is a partnership with the Program for Accessible Health, Communication and Education (PACE), the local affiliate of Population Services International (PSI), to improve the private delivery of maternal healthcare in 30 districts.

The program is led by PACE and integrates the diverse expertise of several other partners: the Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Uganda, Save for Health Uganda, and TransAid.

Key components of our program include:

·         Strengthened network of private health providers

o    Expanding PACE's ProFam  franchise network of private clinics, and building their capacity to offer high-quality maternal health services

·         Accessible supplies and information

o    Developing a sustainable supply chain for maternal health products through wholesale pharmacies and drug shops

o    Supporting Maama Ambassadors to provide education, sell essential maternal health products, and facilitate referral and transportation to facilities for care

·         Affordable care

o    Implementing community health insurance programs for maternal health services and establishing "mothers clubs" to offer community saving schemes to pay for maternal health services

·         Transportation to Care

o    Developing transport models to get women from the community to a health facility for delivery working with local transportation providers

Maternal health challenges in Uganda's hospitals

By Jacqueline Idusso

Health workers often have to use less effective equipment because they do not have modern healthcare technologies.

As a Ugandan, the challenges that women in this country face are very close to my heart. There are 4,700 maternal deaths every year in Uganda. I was eager to learn that the Merck for Mothers team members would be coming to Uganda to gain a deeper understanding of the maternal mortality situation in my country, and was pleased to accompany them on their visits to urban and rural health centers.

Family planning services are a major unmet need in Uganda.

From Kampala, we drove for about four hours to visit facilities in the Mubende and Mityana Districts. We saw a regional referral hospital and government health centers. The dedicated providers discussed the staff shortages and limited access to resources and good quality supplies. A doctor at one understaffed facility, who was also serving as the hospital administrator, explained in frustration that "the gloves the hospital recently received have holes in them, making them useless." Families are often left to purchase their own supplies in order to receive services; which means that women with few resources are often unable to get the maternity care they need.

We concluded the visit with a clearer sense of the challenges associated with maternal health, but at the same time, we were encouraged to know that change is possible.