Dozens of patients routinely wait under a scorching African sun, some of them having walked for hours, to receive medical treatment at the Gordhim Medical Clinic. Located in the rural village of Gordhim in southern Sudan, it provides care for roughly 300 patients daily. Despite the facility's basic conditions, the community receives all primary care at Gordhim, and the locals are in a better situation than other communities in the region.
Things are slightly better in the area since the civil war ended in 2005, but access to healthcare remains a dire situation. A lack of medicine, particularly painkillers and antibiotics, is one of the primary health concerns according to Janet Tufts of the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame. The organization honours Canadians who have contributed to the understanding of disease and improving the health of people.
In 2008, she was part of a team that accompanied Canadian Aid for Southern Sudan (CASS) on a mission to the region. CASS, the humanitarian organization run by Jane Roy and her husband Glen Pearson, have brought the situation in southern Sudan to international attention.
During the mission, medicines and essential supplies worth $20,000 were delivered to relieve suffering in the region through four Physician Travel Packs (PTPs) from Health Partners International of Canada (HPIC). Each PTP consists of two boxes of primary care medicines and supplies donated by Canadian pharmaceutical and healthcare products companies. The staff at Gordhim was overcome with gratitude since they had run out of some crucial medicines. One in particular was put to use immediately.
Mary and Achien
Mary, a 29 year-old pregnant woman, waited for 3 hours under a hot sun to be seen at the Gordhim for a cough that had lingered for over two weeks. Novamoxin (amoxicillin), an antibiotic donated by Teva Canada, was exactly what the doctor ordered for her symptoms. The healthcare staff treated her without having to use less effective medicine, or having to send Mary to buy medication she probably couldn't afford at the market.
Amoxicillin was also the ideal treatment for Achien, a baby suffering from diarrhea and a cough. The doctor treating Achien was overjoyed with the quality of the donated medicine.
Teva Canada consistently supports PTPs by donating Novamoxin and other medicines so desperately needed in the developing world. One of the healthcare staff in the region, who was happy to receive the medicine that treats patients like Mary and Achien, says, “No matter how much we get it is never enough, so we need to keep bringing it.”
“Teva Canada's support of HPIC is an important part of our corporate citizenship initiatives. Hearing about the impact our products have on people like Mary and Achien, in a land far away from Canada, makes this work ever more important,” says David Windross, Vice President of External Affairs.
Along with its donation to southern Sudan, Teva Canada has donated $6.5 million worth of medicines through HPIC to relieve suffering in the developing world.
