January 1st through 17th, 2011

This January, a small group of physicians and medical students will be travelling to a rural hospital in Liberia on the western coast of Africa. We will be delivering supplies and much needed surgical skills to the area surrounding the small city of Phebe, where our group has created a sustained relationship with the hospital over several years. Please support us as we continue our humanitarian efforts and exchange of education and ideas with this community, enriching the lives of our patients, students, and American and Liberian colleagues alike.

Your donations make this work possible!

So far, your generous contributions have made it possible for us to obtain such essential supplies as antibiotics, pain medicine, and surgical instruments for this year's fast-approaching mission.

Your continued support will allow us to provide permanent sterilization equipment and educational materials to foster a collaborative and academic relationship with our Liberian medical colleagues.

Thank you for help! I look forward to updating you soon on our fundraising progress.

-ac

World Food Program working in Liberia

http://www.wfp.org/countries/liberia

"Liberia is one of the poorest countries in the world with a per capita gross domestic product of US$135. Food insecurity is widespread, 64 percent of the population are poor, the child mortality rate is among the five highest in the world and the 39 percent prevalence of chronic malnutrition in children under 5 is reaching critical levels."

This site has a brief summary of Liberia's recent social and political unrest and has some striking statistics about the current state of health and hunger in this war-torn country. You can help!

World Health Organization: Liberia

  • Healthy life expectancy at birth m/f: 34/37
  • Number of Physicians per 1000 population (2004): 0.03
  • Under 5 mortality (2004): 1/4.25
  • Total expenditure on health per capita (Intl$, 2006): 39