A Healthier Future for South Sudan's Families

Abraham is a 25-year-old student who just completed his first year at one of International Medical Corps’ three midwifery schools in South Sudan. His path to the field of midwifery was not easy.

Abraham comes from a large family and he is the youngest of ten children. Abraham’s story begins in primary school. While he had a sponsor for a few years, “I supported my studies through small jobs,” Abraham explains. “I faced numerous challenges during that period, including the payment of school fees and scholastic materials, like textbooks, notebooks, pens and school bags as well as the seven miles’ transport from my home to the school.”

Nevertheless, he persevered with the support of his mother. His father served in the army during the war and was frequently absent for long periods of time. He graduated from primary school in 2012 and then faced the same challenges in secondary school; thanks to a partial sponsorship and part-time employment, he was able to find sufficient funds to pay for school fees, housing and transportation. In 2016, Abraham celebrated the completion of his secondary education.

He feels very privileged to be supported by a scholarship at the Kajo-Keji Health Sciences Institute. It came as a surprise. “One day, when I was visiting South Sudan’s Ministry of Health, I saw an advertisement for a scholarship for any qualified science student to apply in the fields of midwifery and nursing,” Abraham explains.

“Four months later, I was called for an interview after the list of candidates was announced,” he says, and began his studies in January 2019. This class of students just completed their first year and their second clinical rotations.

Many men are enrolled in the three-year midwifery program, and, across all three schools, 36% of the first-year students are men like Abraham. “I promise to do my part to reduce the suffering of the people of South Sudan by offering the knowledge and skills I have gained in this program,” Abraham assures us. “I will teach other students or people who need this knowledge and skills; provide basic health services like nursing care to patients in any health facility; and advocate for better understanding of sexual and reproductive rights and the consequences of gender-based violence for women and girls.”

International Medical Corps’ nursing and midwifery students come from different parts of South Sudan and have different backgrounds, including experience as refugees and with armed conflict. Most are enrolled free-of-charge so that they can focus solely on their studies.

While institutional donors cover most of the educational expense and school maintenance, the students and faculty have identified the need for solar panels to replace an aging generator, which has been causing disruptions in electricity in Juba; additional teaching aids like an electronic birth simulator at the Kajo-Keji school; and additional toilet facilities and a school bus for travel to clinical placements at Wau.

Donations, like those from the GlobalGiving community the next generation of health professionals, like Abraham, in South Sudan.

Right next door to South Sudan, the second largest Ebola Outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) made world news over the past summer with the World Health Organization’s declaration of a “Public Health Emergency of International Concern” in response to the recent transmission across country lines into Uganda — meaning that the current Ebola crisis now constitutes an international public health risk and requires a coordinated, broad-based global response.

As part of internationally coordinated efforts, International Medical Corps trains healthcare workers on Ebola preparedness using a curriculum developed in coordination with the World Health Organization in both the DRC and South Sudan, and in Burundi with the Centers for Disease Control. Fears based on rumors and inaccurate information can prevent health workers from being able to deliver vaccinations and identify possible new cases of infection.

Since 1976, the DRC has experienced ten Ebola outbreaks with the number of cases ranging from only one, to the current outbreak, which has recorded a total of 3,264 cases and 2,181 associated deaths as of October 28, 2019. In the DRC, our lifesaving work includes critical services ranging from screening, training and treatment, to contact tracing and community engagement led by local healthcare workers. Trained volunteer community health workers are particularly instrumental in fighting misinformation and rumors that impede efforts to prevent the spread of Ebola.

In South Sudan, International Medical Corps is supporting the Ministry of Health as it prepares for a potential Ebola outbreak. Seven midwifery and nursing students, along with their eight tutors from Kajo Keji Health Sciences Institute (KKHSI), Juba College of Nursing and Midwifery (JCONAM) and Wau Health Sciences Institute (WHSI) joined the fight against transmission and misinformation by participating in our Ebola Preparedness training in July 2019. During this training they learned the case definition of the disease and approaches to Ebola case management and proper infection prevention and control, and practiced donning and doffing personal protective equipment. 

Following the training, the tutors promoted awareness of the Ebola virus during their classes. In fact, two of the eight tutors went even further and attended the Ebola Preparedness Training of the Trainers course to teach others; these tutors are therefore not only equipped to host workshops for their students at JCONAM and KKHSI, but they are now also certified to host similar trainings with healthcare workers in South Sudan, should it ever be needed.

International Medical Corps’ students and tutors can continue to be a part of the internationally coordinated effort to fight against the Ebola Virus with the generous support of the GlobalGiving community and other donors.

Follow the link for more information about International Medical Corps’ work with Ebola in the DRC: https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/emergency-response-to-ebola-in-the-democratic-repu/