Pacific Island Medical Supplies Fundraising

We are raising funds to transport purchased and donated medical supplies and equipment from New Zealand to Pacific Island hospitals and healthcare service providers.

A well-run health system requires the dedication of knowledgeable staff, equipment to use and consumables. On my visits to the Pacific Island Nations I have found no shortage of extremely dedicated and knowledgeable staff. The equipment at times were in short supply as well as the consumables.

In my role as a nurse I have found that there are numerous times when the hospital would upgrade from using one set of equipment to a new one. This was done while the equipment was in very good working order. I started working on collecting these items and last year, in collaboration with several other organisations, we were able to ship donated items to the Pacific Region.

This year I was able to have several items given to me with the intention that they would make their way to a place where they can be put to good use within the Pacific Region.

Turning to the practical side, the donated items incur cost for:

• Moving from the donating organisation to the shipping depot

• Storing at the shipping depot until a place on a vessel is secured

• Shipping to the destination

Currently there are items for a 40’ container going to Samoa, I am aware of some items that the donners would like to send to Papua New Guinea with more planned for other destinations as well.

The process involves:

• Establishing contact with relevant entities who have close links with the Pacific to ensure there is approval from the Pacific Nation for the donated items to be sent

• Supporting the endeavours of other organisations who are involved in similar processes

• Ensuring that the items sent are in good working order for either use in the hospital or for teaching purposes.

I would very much appreciate you coming on board with this very worthwhile endeavour. I am attaching a copy of an interview I had with the Star Newspaper regarding my involvement with shipping items to the Pacific Region.

Below is the link to the article published in The Star regarding this project.

http://www.thestar.co.nz/news/good-use-in-samoa-for-unused-medical-supplies/