Application for the 6th annual ‘Rashid Gatrad International Travel Bursary’ for the Mother and Baby Project, Gujarat, Pakistan
Midland International Aid Trust (MIAT), a charity based in Walsall (UK) has teamed up with other charities around the world in recognising that a significant number of NHS healthcare staff undertakes international humanitarian work. Much of our work is aimed at helping developing countries and societies in transition to address significant challenges they may face in meeting the healthcare needs of their people. Such partnerships help us not only to carry out our humanitarian work during natural and manmade disasters but also help run our medical projects effectively.
In order to support our current activities we have teamed up with another charity in Pakistan – The Decent Welfare Society, to encourage the development of new initiatives there. We have been working there for many years now, concurrent to projects in other parts of the world. Details from our website and https://www.youtube.com/user/professorgatrad (video used by ITV)
In the past 5 years MIAT has successfully funded travel bursaries to e.g. S.Africa, Malawi, India and Pakistan. Two travel bursaries are made available to healthcare professional per year. For the foreseeable future the charity is focusing on new initiative in Gujarat, Pakistan, where what was a cottage hospital has now got national recognition and is working closely with the University of Gujarat, where there is also a medical school. Professor Gatrad OBE, Consultant Paediatrician Manor Hospital Walsall and chief executive of MIAT is facilitating plans to ‘loosely twin’ this university with the University of Wolverhampton. A new Mother and baby Hospital is under construction in Gujarat and should be completed by the end of 2014.
In Pakistan accommodation and food will be provided by the Bashir family who has many philanthropic projects in and around the Gujarat district. Dr Bashir the head of this charity is medically qualified and runs all the projects there. Briefly these are: Cleftlip/palate, breast care, cataract operations, prosthetic limb fitting, vaginal fistulae operations, dental caries prevention and maternity/neonatal care.
Applications for these bursaries may be made by individuals within the NHS who are working at Consultant level in paediatrics, particularly in the care of new-born babies, and also Senior Midwives/Neonatal Advanced Nurse Practitioners, to help teach/train local staff there. It is expected that the individual will also help set up services to a level that we expect here in the UK. We lay particular emphasis on various ‘life support’ teaching and training. For current application it would be an advantage to be able to speak Urdu/Hindi but this is not essential. It is hoped that individuals will commit 2 – 4 weeks. Debriefing and a short report of what was achieved will be expected after the visit. (Recent report can be found here)
