Each year, more than 340,000 women die in pregnancy and childbirth, with 99% of these deaths in developing countries and hemorrhage the most common cause worldwide. Bleeding can be controlled in a clinic, but we have shown that traditional midwives can use inexpensive misoprostol tablets to save lives in a woman’s home. This is where most births take place and most maternal deaths occur in the developing world--well beyond the reach of hospitals and government health services.
Activities
We help create a sustainable market for misoprostol by working with local businesses who sell it at a small profit. We work with manufacturers, assist with the regulatory process, co-sponsor policy meetings and develop educational materials.
Expected Outcomes
The project is uniquely scalable. Tanzania has been unable to lower maternal death rates to meet the U.N.'s 2015 goal of 75% reduction. With this drug, traditional midwives get their first effective technology and contribute to a reduction in deaths.
Project Message
When we started training for the Kigoma project, word spread. Pregnant women who knew their lives were in danger traveled 70km when they heard that we had a drug to stop bleeding after childbirth.
- Dr. Ndola Prata, Advisor, Tanzania study with traditional midwives
Project Contact
Amy Grossman,
Director, Communications and Development
Venture Strategies Innovations 2401 East Katella Avenue, Suite 400 Anaheim, CA 92806
United States
714-221-2040
Venture Strategies Innovations (VSI) is a nonprofit organization committed to improving women's health in developing countries by creating access to effective and affordable technologies on a large scale.
Organization's Programs
Our innovative approach involves partnerships that build upon existing infrastructure, resources and markets. We focus on reducing barriers to access and enhancing human capacity to bring about sustainable improvements in health.
We have developed a model to increase access to drugs, devices and services for women's health.
Organization's Current Projects on GlobalGiving
Teach Traditional Ethiopian Midwives to Save Lives
Saving Mothers' Lives in Rural Tanzania
Organization Statistics
Pam Norick,
President
Founded in 2008
Employees: 45
Volunteers: 0
Personnel Overview
Melodie Holden, MS, MPH - President
An engineer and businesswoman who led strategy projects as an IBM consultant for 7 years, Melodie worked extensively in Asia and Africa and is experienced in developing business plans, budgeting and evaluation. She applies business approaches to improve health. She is responsible for VSI’s drug regulatory and distribution programs.
Godfrey Mbaruku, MD, PhD - Regional Medical Director, Kigoma, Tanzania
Dr. Mbaruku is a Tanzanian obstetrician-gynecologist and the Regional Director for the Ministry of Health in Kigoma, a rural region in eastern Tanzania. He recently completed a PhD in Sweden on maternal mortality in Tanzania. He has published seven papers on this topic.
Malcolm Potts, MB, BChir, PhD, FRCOG - Bixby Professor, Public Health, UC Berkeley
Dr. Potts is a Cambridge-trained obstetrician and reproductive biologist. As the first Medical Director of the International Planned Parenthood Federation, he introduced family planning methods into many developing countries. As CEO of Family Health International, he launched the first large scale studies of maternal mortality. He has published ten books and over 200 scientific papers.
