wpp-2019-shortlist-medicine-focus-brent-stirton

Chongwe, Zambia

Dismuss uses his bicycle ambulance to transport a young boy with malaria to the nearest clinic. He is a volunteer community healthcare worker in Chongwe district, and is trained to test for common diseases and administer basic drugs. His priority is to transport more serious malaria cases to the clinic, 14 km away, where they can be treated. 

Only half of Zambians living in rural areas have medical facilities within 5 km and there is currently only one doctor for every 16,000 people, compared to one for every 600 in the UK. As a result, volunteer healthcare workers like Dismuss provide a vital lifeline for communities in remote locations.