Improving health
Our impact last year
- 87k doctors, nurses and other medical professionals trained
- 36k people treated for mental health conditions
- 32k wheelchairs, walking frames and other orthopaedic devices were distributed
People in poor communities are much more likely to be disabled than those living in wealthier parts of the world. One of the main reasons is they are at much greater risk of diseases or conditions that can cause disability.
Also, people living with disabilities in developing countries often don’t get the healthcare or medical support they need – such as physiotherapy, a hearing aid, a wheelchair or surgery.
We work in the world’s poorest places to prevent and treat conditions that cause disability, and to enable people with disabilities to access the medical care that they need.
To read more about our work preventing blindness, visit our Saving Sight page.
How we help
CBM helps to improve health by:
- Treating diseases, conditions or injuries that could lead to disability;
- Training specialist doctors, nurses and healthcare workers;
- Providing rehabilitation and physiotherapy;
- Helping to equip hospitals and improve healthcare systems;
- Providing assistive devices such as wheelchairs, crutches or hearing aids.
In action
Improving support for people with mental health problems and their families (Malawi)
People with mental health conditions in Malawi often face stigma, prejudice and abuse. They struggle to access…
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Restoring hope and dignity – treating obstetric fistula
Many women in Tanzania live with obstetric fistula for decades, often rejected by their husbands and communities and…
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Time To Change: tackling mental health stigma in the world’s poorest places
Mental health conditions like depression are a major cause of disability and ill-health worldwide, often leading to…
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Treating cleft lip and palate
Every year more than 170,000 children in the developing world are born with cleft lip and/or palate. Where this is…
Read moreTransforming lives
Denis
“The way to school was so long and hard for him, and he would come back home in pain. So I thought maybe it’s best to stop school…
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Dorotea
“I felt [urine] run down my leg. It happened all the time and I couldn’t stop it. I would sit and not move around… I would like to say thanks a lot to the doctors and the nurses…
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Joan
“I am so proud of her. I couldn’t believe that her lip could be repaired…now she will gain weight.”
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Mariam
“When I go back to the village, I will tell the other women: If you have the same problem, don’t hide. There are doctors who helped me, too, and changed my life!”
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CBM at the NNN: sharing expertise on neglected tropical diseases
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