Support medical training activities and capacity building in Uganda
Private not for profit Foundation based in Italy, operating in Kalongo, Northern Uganda. Aim of the Foundation is to support Dr. Ambrosoli Memorial Hospital and St. Mary's Midwifery School in Kalongo via fund raising and capacity building activities. HISTORY The Foundation is strongly linked to Kalongo via the founder of the hospital and school of midwifery, Dr. Giuseppe Ambrosoli, medical doctor and Combonian missionary who arrived in Kalongo in 1957. At the end of 2019 Pope Francis announced that Father Ambrosoli will be beatified, beatification is due in November 2020. Father Ambrosoli combined his studies in medicine with his vocation to dedicate his life to the poorest, and founded from scratch a medical centre that grew bigger and became a general hospital with 271 beds and 5 wards. It was and still is the only general hospital in the entire District of Agago, where Kalongo lays, and serves a population of about 500.000 people, most of which are children. GOALS Aim of Ambrosoli Foundation is to give continuity and future to Kalongo hospital and the St. Mary's Midwifery School. Key objectives of the Foundation are: - Guarantee the greatest number of people access to quality health services, with particular attention to the poorest and most vulnerable groups, such as mothers and children; - Promote training and vocational courses in medical, health and administrative area, contributing to the achievement of future autonomy of the hospital and the school. The Foundation is a constant point of reference for the hospital, providing not only economic resources but also managerial skills. Our aim is to propose an aid model that rather than being charitable, invests in human capital as the primary factor for a sustainable development of the hospital and of the Country. ACTIVITIES Since 2013 the Foundation has been a stable and reliable partner and Board Member of the Hospital and has financed and continues to support the following activities: 1. Medical training activities and capacity building for local staff. Due to the remote and isolated context in which the hospital is located, it has proved very difficult to attract local specialists to work in the hospital for long term periods. In order to promote capacity building and at the same time ensure that patients have access to specialists, the Foundation liaises with Ugandan and expatriate specialists, both individually and via institutional relations with hospitals and medical universities. These training missions can vary in length and scope, the main goal is to both train junior medical staff and to provide a more attractive working environment offering highly specialized training opportunities. 2. Supporting the costs of medical activities: Ambrosoli Foundation finances at least 30% of the hospital's running costs (staff, medicines, equipment). 3. Supply of modern and efficient instruments. Over the years, Ambrosoli Foundation has purchased various medical devices and equipment to provide more efficient diagnoses and more effective treatments to patients in different departments. It has also acted as an intermediary with institutional donors to obtain gifts in kind. 4. Structural projects: Since its creation the Foundation has sponsored and coordinated the renovation of several wards and areas of the hospital. Most of the structures had never been renovated since they were built in the 1950/60s. Operating theatre, neonatal intensive care unit, radiology, pediatric ward and staff quarters are amongst the wards renovated. In 2018, a large three-year project was launched to entirely renovate the hospital staff quarters, where the personnel and their families live. In 2020 the Foundation has committed itself to support the midwifery school in the creation of the Degree in Midwifery, in order to improve the school's receptive capacity focusing both on improving teaching quality and on strengthening existing facilities. The Foundation is addressing the efforts to fund the construction of a new building hosting computer classrooms and laboratory rooms. 5. Female empowerment. The activities aim to support the training of the students of the St. Mary's School. The Ambrosoli Foundation supports the school through the provision of scholarships for certificates and diplomas and for the specialist training of certified midwives who continue their studies to acquire managerial and management skills. The Ambrosoli Foundation also contributes to the strengthening of the educational and training activities of the midwifery school in order to expand the training capacity of the school, improving the admission process, ensuring high quality teaching by promoting also basic computer courses.