Reducing Malaria Deaths among Kenyan Children

Summary

In the fight against malaria in rural Kenya, the needs are great but the solutions are simple. With inexpensive resources such as test kits, microscopes, and mosquito nets, HealthRight's project will save hundreds of children this year. Since 2009, HealthRight has been working to reduce malaria deaths in rural communities in the North Rift Valley region of Kenya. The malaria program supports over 1,000 community health workers and 21 health centers to provide education and treatment to poor fam

What is the issue, problem, or challenge?

Malaria is the leading cause of death to children under five years old in Kenya. In 2010, there were more than 27,300 cases of malaria in villages where HealthRight works. And for every child diagnosed with malaria, there are five more that couldn’t be diagnosed due to a lack of simple equipment or trained staff in rural Kenyan health centers.

How will this project solve this problem?

With inexpensive resources including malaria testing kits, microscopes and mosquito nets, hundreds of children’s lives can be saved each year. HealthRight’s project also trains doctors to properly diagnose and treat malaria and community health workers to visit households and educate families about their risks.

Potential Long Term Impact

This project will benefit over 25,000 Kenyans this year. But by providing health centers with the resources that they need to diagnose and treat malaria, we can save hundreds of children’s lives every year, for many years to come.

Project Message

“With cooperation with HealthRight International, our ability to serve the community has improved due to provision of equipments that were not there before.”
- Sabby, Kenyan Health Worker

Resources