Australian Doctors for Africa

Australian Doctors for Africa is a licenced charity registered in Western Australia. Founded in 2005 by Orthopaedic Surgeon, Dr Graham Forward its objective is to provide voluntary medical, surgical and nursing services to areas of need in Africa. There are currently three locations which have established programmes of medical aid, namely Somalia, Madagascar and Ethiopia. In Somalia efforts are based in Bosaso in the north, in Puntland on the Gulf of Aden. Visiting teams of orthopaedic surgeons, nurses and anaesthetist have carried out consultations in clinics and carried out many operations on Somali people injured in the clan fighting and civil war. Container loads of medical and hospital equipment have been despatched from the port of Fremantle to Bosaso. The next surgical visit is September 2007 by volunteer surgeons Dr Graham Forward and Dr Tim Keenan and anaesthetist Dr Emma Giles. In Ethiopia regular operating and teaching assignments are carried out at the Tikur Anbessa (Black Lion) Hospital in Addis Ababa. A container of medical and equipment is being assembled in Claremont, Western Australia for shipment towards the end of 2007. In Madagascar regular visits have been made to Tulear in the southwest of the country, providing orthopaedic and gastroenterology services to patients at the General Hospital and the Clinique St Lucque.A container of specialized surgical equipment including video endoscopes will arrive at Tulear port in October 2007. There are now 247 members with access to the website at www.ausdocafrica.org. A managing board of directors consists of Dr Graham Forward, Ms Jeanne Bell, Mr Robert Forward and Ms Christine Tasker registered with the Australian Taxation Office and ASIC. The organization has been recognized by The Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and The Australian Orthopaedic Association.