Malawi set to open first specialised stroke unit
A partnership of several institutions in the United Kingdom and Malawi is working to launch the first Malawi Stroke Unit, which is expected to start offering service by December 2019.
A fundraising event was held in London on June 13 2019, to raise funds for the equipment and to establish a multi-specialty training program for the Malawi team. During the event, £51213.00 (MWK50.1 million) was raised.
The Stroke service will be based at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital, Blantyre. Once operational, the unit will become one of the few such specialised units operating in the continent of Sub-Saharan Africa.
The Malawi unit will be led and run by clinicians in Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital with support from team members based in the UK and will take best practices and systems from the UK and make them relevant and deliverable for Malawi, where the incidence of stroke is rising fast. This is an important and timely development.
Stroke units are organizational structures which transform stroke care, increase survival and reduce disability from stroke.
The Project:
The project, which has been seven years in preparation is now in its implementation stage. Over this time an enriched partnership has evolved between UCL in London (Stroke Research Centre), University College London Hospitals, Liverpool University (via the Wellcome Institute in Malawi) and the Malawi government and the College of Medicine.
Successful implementation of the first Malawian stroke unit in Blantyre will lead to new partnerships in other cities in Malawi and in neighbouring countries with similar needs. The team are excited by the collaborative opportunities this partnership will offer the stroke multi-disciplinary team, both in the UK and Malawi.
Telekom Networks Malawi (TMN) has generously supported the construction of the unit however, additional funds to establish a multi-specialty training program for the Malawi team, and buy equipment for the unit was needed.
The evening was hosted at the Conduit Club in Mayfair, and was attended by 100 guests, Professor Tom Solomon, author of Roald Dahl’s Marvelous Medicine and Roald Dahl’s personal doctor, gave a captivating after dinner talk on ‘Roald Dahl’s African Adventures and The Stroke Revolution’.
The energy in the room was electric and the partnership was evident for all to see.
On the night, £51,213 was raised, with more pledges still coming through. The support for the unit has been tremendous and is an essential step in achieving the goal of setting up Malawi’s first stroke unit.
Several videos were showed on the night, showcasing the need, the project overview and the rehabilitation potential. More information about the project can be found on their website https://malawistrokeunit.org/.
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This is good news indeed
Is this a joke to Malawians or you are trying to establish a stroke rehabilitation centre. Queens hospital does not have a laboratory and angiosuites that can handle such cases. the CT scan is non existent ,MRI broke down and there are no radiologist, neuroradiologist or neurointerventionalist. Are u sure you will be able to manage stroke with few ours of symptomatology and presentation to the hospital. Even South Africa does not have a stroke Unit where are you getting this fantasies . PLEASE FIND ANOTHER BETTER PHRASING FOR YOUR PROJECT NOT A STROKE UNIT.