Gambia Charity Transforms Healthcare for Locals
Image of healthcare facility in Gambia.
Courtesy of BWIAM General Hospital, 2025.
A new partnership with DirectRelief is working every day on the ground at BWIAM General Hospital, transforming healthcare for locals who have no other access aside from this project!
My good friend from middle school, Madison Shelton, a rising Senior at the University of Pennsylvania, is working alongside a steadfast team that aims to provide quality healthcare for all patients who visit.
Implementing an outreach system for patients with HIV is the focal point of their current mission statement.
Gambia’s daily temperatures surge to 100 degrees Fahrenheit, and air conditioning is rarely available in some areas. The heat adds additional pressure on the medical facilities in their efforts to provide healthcare.
There continues to be significant stigma surrounding HIV and AIDS, leading to patients facing difficulty with the prolonged care of their conditions. This results in worsening symptoms.
The campaign creates a system to meet patients where they are, showing them discretion in quality care and simplifying the process for patients who live a distance from the hospital. Some patients do not want to go to the HIV ward in the hospital, for fear of being known as diseased.
Madison and DirectRelief + Power Up Gambia are also implementing a technological upgrade within the hospital. The upgrade’s benefit of inputting patient information directly into the national HIV database supports doctors, social workers, and nurses. Technology creates a necessary streamlined approach to provide equal healthcare for all HIV and AIDS patients.
This action is a positive step toward transforming Gambia to match today’s technological advances. The staff’s former method was recording the information on the clinic’s only computer.
The BWIAM General Hospital is fundraising for five low-cost tablets for digital record-keeping and patient tracking, phone credit to support follow-up calls by the social worker, and mobile hotspot/WiFi support to allow data collection and use of digital tools across the clinic.
The approximate cost of these simple technological advances is as follows: Tablets to digitize the clinics (5 Units): $500 USD (approximately $100 USD per tablet), Phone Credit (3 years): $500 USD/year x 3 years = $1,500, and WiFi Credit (3 years): $1,000 USD/year x 3 years = $3,000.
The additional costs of motorbikes, fuel, a systemic technology upgrade, and discretionary funds bring the total to $16,000.
The new clinic connects patients who reside in Gambia’s rural areas, susceptible individuals who are prone to illness, and who face monetary difficulty in seeking medical treatment. It is a wonderful initiative to serve the underprivileged and provide a guiding light for those in need.
Please consider donating even $5 to support healthcare in Gambia for those most vulnerable by clicking the link below.
GoFundMe Help Power Up Gambia Transform Healthcare
With Gratitude,
Ellen
