We provided hospital care for children in Monrovia in the paediatric department of Barnesville health centre, a project we began in 2022, until this work was handed over to the Ministry of Health in September. We treated children in a critical condition who were admitted to the intensive care unit with severe malaria, severe acute malnutrition, or suffering from the effects of undiagnosed epilepsy. 

Since 2022, when we added this 25-bed paediatric department to the health centre, we established a triage system, a five-bed emergency room, a five-bed intensive care unit, a nine-bed paediatric ward, a nine-bed inpatient therapeutic feeding centre, and a two-bed isolation unit in the department. Before handing over the department, we ensured that patients and staff will have consistent access to clean water and electricity, and also conducted trainings for clinicians and nurses from the Ministry of Health.

Throughout 2024, we also continued to run our mental health and epilepsy project in five health facilities in Montserrado county, to increase access to healthcare for people living with mental health and neurological conditions. Our team of neurologists, psychiatrists, and psychologists provide treatment on an outpatient basis, making hospital referrals when necessary to help ensure the best possible care for our patients. 

In addition, our psychosocial support workers and health volunteers work with patients’ families and communities to address the social stigma endured by people with neurological and mental health conditions. The project implements MSF’s ‘People and Patients as Partners’ approach, which aims to actively involve patients in decision-making about their own care plan, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health.