Since 1974, Inter Care’s mission is to save lives and alleviate suffering through the provision of surplus medical resources to rural partner health units in sub-Saharan Africa.
We are a registered charity (no. 275637) and has a Wholesale Dealers Authorisation (WDA) licence from the MHRA to export pharmaceuticals. In 2012 we received the highly prestigious Queens Award for Voluntary Service. This was to celebrate the 50+ volunteers who help Inter Care. Many of our volunteers are medically trained.
Why our mission is important…
- Despite many sub-Saharan African countries expanding healthcare programmes, the deficit in healthcare coverage is predicted to worsen due to increasing population sizes*. This means that more people will struggle to pay for their healthcare and therefore, will not receive the treatment the desperately need.
- HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis (TB), and Malaria claim an estimated 3 million lives across 34 sub-Saharan African countries each year **. We can help to provide medical supplies that will treat symptoms of these illnesses.
- In 2021, the average life expectancy at birth in sub-Saharan Africa was 60.24 years compared to 82 years in the UK*** This is due to poor diet and lifestyle. Many of the health units we support provide programmes to support vulnerable people’s nutrition and women’s post-natal care.
* Source: Factors affecting family medicine programmes in sub-Saharan Africa: a narrative review of recent literature. Davies et al. (2022). www.ghanamedj.org Volume 56 Number 3 ** Source: Factsheet: NIAID International Research Activities FY 2020 sub-Saharan Africa Region. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Updated April 2023 *** Source: https://www.statista.com/statistics/805644/life-expectancy-at-birth-in-sub-saharan-africa/ And https://www.statista.com/statistics/281671/life-expectancy-united-kingdom-uk-by-gender/
How we aim to support vulnerable patients across sub-Saharan Africa
Inter Care aims to collect surplus health care goods and medicines (donated and purchased), for the two-fold purpose of medical waste reduction and to send regular consignments of vital medical aid to rural health units across sub-Saharan Africa.
We support approximately 80 health units in Sierra Leone, Ghana, Malawi and Tanzania, with regular consignments of medical aid.
Each health unit we work with makes requests for their individual medical needs; sometimes, where those needs cannot be met by donated supplies, we need to purchase products.
Interested in supporting Inter Care?
We receive no government funding and rely entirely on voluntary donations to fund our work. Your support will enable Inter Care to provide vital medical aid to vulnerable patients across sub-Saharan Africa.