In 2005, there were only eight neurologists and two neurosurgeons serving 80 million people in Ethiopia. This spurred P2P to partner with the Mayo Clinic and Addis Ababa University (AAU) to develop a neurology training fellowship. The first Fellows joined the program in 2006 and graduated in 2008. Now, about a dozen medical students participate in the program each year.

The neurology program at AAU now offers morning sessions, seminars, clinics, bedside instruction, and continuing medical education (CME). P2P continues to organize experts from around the world to support post-graduate medical education. P2P volunteers continue to support our colleagues in Ethiopia using telemedicine. We see the ongoing high quality education received by neurology fellows as an indicator that our triangular partnership model works.

In March 2009, P2P partnered with the American International Health Alliance, the University of Wisconsin, and the Addis Ababa School of Medicine to develop an emergency medical curriculum. Previously, Ethiopia lacked any unified emergency medicine curriculum or training.

The program began with a residency curriculum developed by Ethiopian doctors and nurses, after visits to the University of Wisconsin. The curriculum responds to unique challenges of the Ethiopian context. American instructors used the curriculum to “train the trainers” at the launch of the Emergency Medicine Training Center. By 2015, Ethiopian instructors lead over 90% of courses.

Eventually, Black Lion Hospital opened the first emergency department in the country. AAU and Black Lion continue to collaborate on an Emergency Medicine residency and a Master’s in Emergency Medicine (roughly equivalent to a Nurse Practitioner program in the USA).

As the involvement of foreign partners has diminished, the success of the program has not. The curriculum remains a resource that can be used across Ethiopia. A new generation of doctors is graduating with experience in emergency medicine, which we believe will jump-start growth of emergency departments around the country.

2018 will mark P2P’s 10^th Annual Healthcare and Medical Education Conference in Washington, DC. The Conference provides a reliable venue for participants in the triangular partnership to meet, exchange ideas, and update each other on the state of healthcare in Ethiopia and the developed world.

At the 2017 Conference, we began our focus on increasing cancer care in Ethiopia. This year, we plan to continue that dialogue. We will also mark the Conference’s 10^th anniversary by bringing more participants from Ethiopian than ever. By connecting more Ethiopian communities and institutions to the triangular partnership, we can increase the impact of our model. We hope you will join us!

Even in the USA, many people suffer from lack of access to affordable healthcare. P2P founder Dr. Mehari noticed that in his home state of Kentucky, far too many were uninsured.

People’s Clinic was established in 2005 to provide free medical care to those without health insurance or the ability to pay. P2P and St. Claire Regional Medical Center recruited volunteers and other partner organizations to build and staff the Clinic. The Clinic is supported entirely by the generosity of local churches, individuals and organizations who share our belief that health care is a human right. The People’s Clinic receives no state or federal government funding.

EMERGENCY HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE FOR INTERNALLY DISPLACED PEOPLE IN ATAYE TOWN, ETHIOPIA

• In October 2021, P2P supported Adult women and children who are internally displaced due to the conflict in Ataye, North Shoa by supplying reproductive health sanitary pads and hygienic materials to 243 Women and 321 Under 5 children in one of the camps in Ataye town.

• P2P has positioned itself to expand the emergency humanitarian assistance effort in the conflict-affected areas in Ethiopia in emergency clinical care and public health assistance.

SUPPORTING THE ETHIOPIAN HEALTH SYSTEM THROUGH MEDICAL MISSIONS.

• From November to mid December 2021, P2P provided medical supplies Bahr Dar university, Tibebe Ghion Hopital and Debrebirhan hospital medical supplies that are useful in Orthopedic and trauma surgery, worth 1.5 million Birr.

• P2P surgeons assisted the millennium trauma center by conducting trauma surgeries and helping patients recover from their injuries.

The HIV/AIDS pandemic has deeply affected Ethiopia. Adult prevalence of HIV in Ethiopia stands at about 2%. HIV/AIDS has led to a seven-year decrease in life expectancy and a greatly reduced workforce. As with many crises, youth are left disproportionately affected. The World Health Organization estimates that 1.2 million children total in Ethiopia have been orphaned by AIDS. Significant numbers of children orphaned by AIDS have been left to raise families in what are known as “child-headed households”. These children are forced to nurture their younger siblings including food, clothing and shelter.

Since its inception, People to People has strived to build a bridge between the diaspora and institutions in Ethiopia. Our vision has been to harness the immense human capital of the global Ethiopian diaspora to address the severe shortage of physicians, health professionals, and the medical & health infrastructure and systems. P2P continues to facilitate and support visiting diaspora physicians and professionals who give their time in-country to give lectures, do rounds, conduct trainings, or otherwise support their peers. Through partnering of hospitals and universities in Ethiopia with their counterparts in North America, Europe, and across the globe, there is even greater potential to fill in the gaps and enhance Ethiopia’s overall healthcare system.

(2007-2010) With the support of a grant from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, in 2007, P2P established a youth center in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The center was equipped with internet and a research library that provided relevant information on HIV/AIDS, reproductive health and family planning services with the aim to slow down the rate of population growth and HIV incidence among youths between the ages of 15 and 30. (2005) Through a partnership with The Pfizer Foundation, P2P supplied the Ministry of Health in Ethiopia with the drug Fluconazol (also known as Diflucan) to be used in the treatment of AIDS patients with systemic fungal infections. (2002) P2P was awarded a grant from The Pfizer Foundation that was used to educate high school students in three regions of Ethiopia (Oromia, Amhara, and Tigray) about HIV prevention and transmission through behavioral changes. A total of 170 students, school administrators and health care workers have been educated on HIV/AIDS prevention.