Makulinski Family Foundation Impact

Doctors Without Borders

 

Doctors Without Borders (also known as Medecins Sans Frontieres or MSF) is an international medical humanitarian organization that provides aid in over 70 countries. Every day, MSF's teams of doctors, nurses, logisticians, and other frontline workers are often among the first on the scene when disaster strikes.

Why Support Doctors Without Borders?

Since 1971, they've provided emergency medical care worldwide in response to war, natural disasters, epidemics, and refugee crises. Doctors Without Borders was founded in 1971 and is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.

In conflict zones and natural disaster areas, medical care is often one of the most difficult life-sustaining services to obtain. Doctors Without Borders provides much-needed medical services to regions that need them most.

Some of these services include:

  • Providing primary health care
  • Offering mental health support
  • Treating and preventing infectious diseases such as cholera, measles, meningitis, kala-azar, and monkeypox.
  • Supporting maternal health and preventing childbirth-related deaths in developing countries
  • Responding to the Covid-19 pandemic
  • Treatment and education for the HIV/AIDS epidemic
  • Operating mobile clinics
  • Offering nutritional support

 

Unlike so many organizations ruled by political currents, Doctors Without Borders is unique in that they are an impartial organization. They provide medical aid to people regardless of race, religion, or political affiliation.

Finally, MSF uses 85% of all donations for direct medical care, 14% for fundraising operations, and only 1% for administrative costs. We feel confident supporting a highly efficient organization that devotes such a high percentage of donations to directly helping the people they serve.

The Pakistan Flooding Crisis

In August of 2022, Pakistan experienced an abnormal level of rainfall that resulted in devastating flooding throughout the country's small towns and cities. Families were forced to flee their homes as water continued to rise, reaching nine feet in some areas, and swept entire villages away.

Ultimately, more than 30 million people were left without shelter, food, medicine, or clean drinking water, creating a crisis that demanded a swift response.

Doctors Without Borders was on the ground within days, providing much-needed medical care and supplies to those affected.

Reproductive Healthcare in Honduras

As of March 2022, the teenage pregnancy rate in Honduras reached 23 percent—a startlingly high percentage considering the risks that come with adolescent births. Adolescent mothers face devastating complications—the leading cause of death for girls aged 15-19 across the globe.

Poor access to contraception, high rates of sexual violence, and a lack of reproductive health education all contribute to the problem.

Earlier this year in Choloma, the third largest city in Honduras, MSF launched medical and psychological care and community education on sexual and reproductive health issues. These services expand to nearby San Pedro Sula, where doctors, nurses, psychologists, and community educators provide pre and post-natal consultations. They also offer support for mental health and contraception.

MSF's team in Choloma provided contraception to 690 community members in 15 different towns and villages in just ten months. Additionally, they've provided over 740 mental health consultations for symptoms ranging from depression to post-traumatic stress disorder.

The Impact of Funding and Support

Organizations like Doctors Without Borders can only provide life-saving services with the funding and support of donors. Since 2017, the Makulinski Family Foundation has contributed $13,000 to operations for Doctors Without Borders.

Along with the other seven million donors who contribute to MSF each year, our contributions helped provide:

  • 12.5 million medical consultations
  • 1.6 million measles vaccinations
  • 1 million hospital and clinic admissions

Final Thoughts

Private donations for Doctors Without Borders allow the organization to decline government funding that may otherwise compromise its ability to implement effective programs in communities that need it most.

We're proud to support Doctors Without Borders, and we'll continue to support their efforts to provide impartial medical aid worldwide. You can make a one-time or ongoing monthly donation HERE to join us in our support.

 

- Article by Amanda Kern (September 2022)