Partners: Virgin Unite, Anglo Coal, Ndlovu Medical Trust
Location: South Africa
Objective: Create a community health center that offers basic health care services at an affordable price and provides free diagnosis and treatment for HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria
In 2006, PEPFAR, Virgin Unite, Anglo Coal and the South African Government came together in partnership to support the Bhubezi Community Health Center. The center is a one-stop health care center that is bringing effective diagnosis and treatment to a poor community in rural South Africa. The area has very limited health facilities, and it is estimated that over 20% of the population is HIV-positive. Bhubezi will serve approximately 70,000 people from 12,000 households living in 21 villages. The center will charge for basic health care services and provide free diagnosis and treatment for HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. The Health Center will also drive an ambitious prevention program to try to stop new infections within the community for all three diseases.
The center has been built on a model developed by a remarkable social entrepreneur, Hugo Templeman, who created a successful autonomous treatment center (ATC) in a rural area about 100 kilometers northeast of Pretoria. This center provides high-quality health care services and is sustained through international contributions and affordable payments for basic health services from the patients themselves. In addition to building the ATC, Templeman has also driven economic development through the creation of a number of local businesses that surround the clinic - everything from a bakery, to a diaper manufacturer, to a car wash. The new Bhubezi Community Health Center will follow this same model and then be scaled up to launch a number of new health centers.
Each partner brings its own unique strengths to the party. Virgin Unite and Anglo Coal provided funds for the capital costs of the buildings and equipment. PEPFAR is supporting the costs of the operations including technical assistance, management systems and drugs. The South African Government supplies the critical on-the-ground relationships, while Right to Care, a large South African NGO, provides monitoring and evaluation assistance. All of this has come together in a long term partnership that will have impact on thousands of people's lives.
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