NEWS: Improvements at Bansang Hospital, the Gambia

Rotary runs countless humanitarian projects both locally, nationally and internationally, and also partners with many charities worldwide. For example, the Rotary Club of Jersey and others helped to provide a much needed second Glostavent® Anaesthesia System for Bansang Hospital in the Gambia, through the Bansang Hospital Appeal.

The Bansang Hospital Appeal was founded by Anita Smith MBE MRG following a family holiday to the Gambia in 1992. The charity does amazing work to support the Bansang Hospital, which has exceedingly few resources, yet is responsible for the health care needs of some 600,000 Gambians, as well as patients who arrive from surrounding countries.

The Glostavent ® Anaesthesia System is purpose designed for use in the challenging environment of hospitals such as Bansang, where facilities are limited and resources scarce. Anita said "We wanted a second Glostavent, because we had been so thrilled with the first one, and the after sales service was excellent. The machine is a real lifesaver".

The new Glostavent will be used to save lives in the hospital's Obstetrics Theatre. Around half a million women die annually before, during or shortly after giving birth - and almost all of these deaths occur in developing countries. Half of all maternal deaths occur in sub-Saharan Africa, where one in two women lacks access to a trained midwife.

Thanks to the Bansang Hospital Appeal there have been improvements made in all departments of the hospital. Read more about the Bansang Hospital Appeal here: www.bansanghospitalappeal.com