On the 25th June I will be travelling to Malawi to spend 4 weeks as a medical volunteer. Access to health services and facilities is poor, and there are only 2 doctors per 100,000 people. Furthermore, the majority of Malawi’s population lives in rural areas and cannot afford or reach these services. Over half the population lives below the poverty line, and Malawi faces constant food uncertainty, high levels of malnutrition, high birth rates and high dependency rates. Malawi is also one of the top 10 countries affected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic and has a high prevalence of malaria. According to the World Health Organisation, one in 10 children will not see the age of 5 years old

The Malawi Medical Volunteer Project that I am embarking upon aims to address some of these issues at a local level through education, awareness, outreach programmes, and improved access to primary health care, and I will be assisting with providing medical treatment to those who need it. It will be a fantastic way to aid those who need it most in a field I thoroughly enjoy and feel passionately about. Healthcare should be a right, not a privilege.