We ensure the longevity of our impact by partnering closely with institutions that have a vested long-term interest in the country, including domestic and international governments, local healthcare institutions (public, private, and faith-based), international and local non-profit organizations, U.S.-based hospitals and private companies conducting business in sub-Saharan Africa.
The Catholic University of Health and Allied Sciences (CUHAS) is in Mwanza, Tanzania, and is one of Tanzania’s seven medical schools country-wide. CUHAS educates ~2,400 healthcare students from the certificate level to post-graduate degree level. CUHAS has worked in partnership with Touch since 2004, when Touch helped support CUHAS’ inaugural class of 10 medical students. CUHAS is a flagship institution of Touch’s Treat & Train Network. On this site, we refer to CUHAS and Bugando Medical Centre collectively as “Bugando.”
Bugando Medical Centre (BMC) is a 900-bed referral and teaching hospital in Mwanza, Tanzania. As one of Tanzania’s four largest hospitals, it serves 17 million people throughout the Lake Zone Region. Touch and BMC have worked in partnership since our inception in 2004 and it is a flagship institution of our Treat & Train Network. In addition to providing patient care, BMC has training programs for nurses, including an eLearning program.
D-tree has been working even since pre-Smartphone times to exploit the potential of mobile software to plug knowledge gaps existing in many parts of the world. D-tree has been working with Touch in implementing M-Mama and built the decision-making software to support dispatchers in managing incoming emergency requests.
Sengerema Council Designated Hospital (SCDH), formerly known as Sengerema Designated District Hospital, is a 300-bed Catholic hospital that offers public services to over 700,000 people in the Sengerema district. We have partnered closely with SDCH to improve healthcare worker training and maternal health access in the Lake Zone. SCDH attends over 10,000 births per year and, in 2014, was the first hospital to help pilot and implement m-mama.
Shinyanga Regional Hospital is a Government owned 300-bed hospital serving a catchment area of almost 2 million people in Tanzania’s Lake Zone. We have partnered with Shinyanga Regional Hospital since 2014, when they joined our Treat & Train Network hosting external clinical rotations for Bugando students. The Hospital has since been a key partner in implementing Vodafone Foundation’s m-mama program for the Shinyanga Region, including providing critical neonatal emergency care.
Pathfinder is a global non-profit working to improve the sexual and reproductive health of women, men, and young people in developing countries. Pathfinder has been working with Touch in implementing our M-Mama program, training community healthcare workers for village outreach, and integrating the referral and transportation system across the selected districts.
The National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR) is the largest public health research institution in Tanzania; they have eight locations across the country including one in Mwanza. Touch partners with NIMR on research projects and program monitoring and evaluation.