Ekwendeni Mission Hospital is in the northern part of Malawi, about 20km from the nearest city, Mzuzu. It serves an area that includes 372 villages in a rural area where the economy is based on subsistence farming. The hospital is a ministry of the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian, Synod of Livingstonia and is one of the oldest mission hospitals in Malawi.
The Ekwendeni College of Health Sciences adjacent to the hospital has over 800 nursing students enrolled, and the hospital has affiliated Health Centers at Enukweni, Kavuzi, and Bandawe.
With a life expectancy of only about 45 years in the community, a major priority is combatting infectious diseases like TB, malaria, and AIDS as well as childhood malnutrition. The hospital provides about 18,000 vaccinations per year as well as primary care and pediatric and maternity services. Maternity services are a critical part of improving health outcomes. Malawi has 439 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births and 29 neonatal deaths per 1,000 live births. Taking care or mothers pre- and post-delivery is a priority for MBF and Ekwendeni.
Ekwendeni Hospital is one of the 5 hospitals that is part of the Countrywide Medical Network emerging in Malawi. The network will help mission hospitals share surgical residencies, specialty residencies and increase referrals for better patient care and more sustainable economics.
Patients wait at the Ekwendeni Outpatient Center.
Care for fragile newborns at the hospital includes skin-to-skin contact also known as kangaroo care.
Staff prepare supplies for mobile clinics that go out to rural areas
Preparing for the long journey back home after a post-natal checkup.
