What is Harambee?
The Harambee Scheme was devised in 2001, and is now organized by Dr Rosie Crane, who as a medical student spent several visits working at Gai Clinic in Kenya, and saw at first hand the problems faced by thousands of the Akamba who, because of poverty, do not seek medical help when sick. There is no NHS in Kenya, and many patients could not afford to visit a clinic. Gai clinic, although originally set up as a mission hospital, is now self funded, and its efforts to provide health care based on need, encountered many problems of patient debt.
Harambee (a Swahili word for Cooperation) directly addresses the problem by issuing special AAF plastic cards to only those known needy patients, enabling them to receive half price treatment at Gai and four other dispensary/clinics in the Mivukoni area. The balance of the cost is then invoiced monthly to AAF. Harambee benefits the community by giving the poorest people access to affordable health care, and also it reduces patient debt at the clinics, thereby releasing more funds for much needed medicines and equipment.
HOW IS HARAMBEE FUNDED?
The bulk of funding for the scheme is from a growing number of university students, who make monthly donations to a designated Harambee Fund within AAF. At present the students are funding 180 cards in Kenya. This means that 180 families, representing nearly two thousand men, women, and children, although still poor, can now afford medical care. Anyone can donate to the Harambee Fund, with a single gift or regular monthly contribution, which will enable us to help even more families. Giving each family access to good health care costs AAF each month ~ little more than the price of a pint!
WHO BENEFITS FROM HARAMBEE?
Quite simply, the poorest members of communities. When selecting recipients of cards, we choose people who are known by our local representatives to be very poor, probably large families, maybe one parent families or orphans caring for themselves (of which there are many). They will probably have no employment income and very little land on which to grow food. With a poor diet, unsafe water supply, and inadequate sanitation, these people are more at risk of infection and illness.
Now because of the Harambee card, and the subsidized cost to the parents, many children are being brought for free immunization from otherwise potentially fatal diseases. There are many adults and children who are alive today because now they can afford to attend a clinic, confident that they can receive the attention and the treatment they need. Also, because of the reduction of patient debt, the facilities and scope of treatment available is gradually increasing.
NHIF Scheme
The HARAMBEE card now has even further benefits for the poor due to AAF registering many cardholders with the state NHIF insurance scheme and paying the premiums to enable the holder to not only receive a 50% discount on out-patient treatment, but also free in-patient treatment at certain hospitals, of which the Akamba Health Centre and Mwingi Hospital are registered. The combined effect of these two schemes should make a terrific impact on the health of the local population.
