Mogadishu SOS Medical Centre

The SOS Medical Centre, Mogadishu has three main components - Mother-Child Clinic, Emergency Paediatric Unit and a TB Treatment Centre. All provide the most vulnerable women and children with high quality primary and emergency health care. In addition there is a Community Nursing School. The SOS Medical Centre receives support from the European Union and UNICEF and works in conjunction with the African Medical Research Foundation (AMREF) and the World Health Organisation (WHO). The Mother-Child Clinic has about 18000 patients and delivers about 5000 babies each year. In addition there are about 250 out-patients every day. In conjunction with WHO, the clinic regularly screens both in-and out-patients for HIV/AIDS. The Emergency Paediatric Unit provides both in- and out- patient care - about 67,000 patients a year. The TB Treatment Centre works with both WHO and the World Food Programme to treat patients with TB, which is endemic in Somalia and is increasing due to high rates of malnutrition and shortage of medicines. The Community Nursing School is the only school of its kind in Somalia and is recognised by both WHO and the International Nursing Council. Nurses are trained in community nursing. Many go on to work in the wider Somali community as well as in the SOS Medical Centre.