WONDER Foundation supports women and girls across the world with the knowledge, skills, opportunities and networks they need to exit poverty for good, and bring others with them.
They have partnered with ISSI (The Institut Supérieur en Sciences Infirmières), since 2015, the leading institution for nurse and midwifery training in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). ISSI plays a critical role in addressing the country’s severe shortage of healthcare professionals. With only 4 nurses per 10,000 people, the DRC’s healthcare system is vastly under-resourced, particularly in rural areas, where communities have limited or no access to basic medical care.
We are supporting a project for ISSI’s nursing and midwifery students to conduct community health camps in four underserved cities—Matadi, Mbuji-Mayi, Kolwezi, and Kikwit. These locations were chosen due to high rates of maternal and neonatal mortality, lack of trained healthcare staff, and widespread preventable diseases.
Through this project, under supervision the ISSI students will:
- Provide free healthcare services to 400 people in these cities.
- Train two healthcare providers per location (a total of 8) to improve local healthcare capacity.
- Deliver maternal and neonatal health education to expecting mothers, reducing preventable deaths.
- Deliver hygiene training, which is limited among nursing practice, reducing preventable deaths.
- Gain practical field experience, better preparing them for careers in healthcare and rural service.