Board of Directors 2016 ↓

• Dr. Yoni Barnhard
• Dr. John Brothers, President
• Mira Dewji (joined December 2016)
• Steven Hatfield
• James Mann, Vice President
• Robert Schwed
• Adrian Stewart

Advisory Board 2016 ↓

• Alexandra Esparza, Chair
• Kristy Bohling
• Alison Carlman
• Adam Chadroff
• Jameel Farruk
• Rohan Mehta
• Dr. Jaymie Ang Henry
• Elena Rubinov
• Nick Smoot
• Dr. Sierra Washington
• Tyler Woebkenberg

Organizational Supporters ↓

• Allen & Overy LLP
• Buy1Give1
• Contractors Sales
• Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP
• DA Collins Construction Co., Inc.
• Direct Relief
• Dr. Heidi Flagg and Spring OBGYN
• Drilling for Hope Fund of The Community Foundation of the Greater Capital Region
• ESMI of New York
• Fistula Foundation
• Fulham College Boys' School
• GE Foundation
• GlobalGiving
• Goldman, Sachs & Co Matching Gift Program
• Gorman Bros.
• HMA Contracting
• Hoffman & Edgette, Inc.
• Iron Roost, Inc.
• Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies
• Karibu Kikoy LLC
• Lancaster Development Inc.
• Malta Development Co., Inc.
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
• Mayer Brown LLP
• Munter Enterprises
• PeriGen
• Pet Partners
• Polyset
• Princeton in Africa
• Quidoo Consulting
• Saratoga National Golf Club
• Salesforce Foundation
• Silicon Valley Community Foundation
• Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP
• St. Therese College VZW
• Smile Train
• Sotheby's International Reality
• Spa Cascada
• TD Advisors
• The Saratoga Hospital
• VMware
• Vodafone Americas Foundation
• Women's Global Giving Fund of the Community Foundation of the Greater Capital Region
• WonderWork

Individual Supporters ↓

• Pamela Armstrong-Manchester and Avery Manchester
• Rhoda and Dr. Bob Barnhard Charitable Fund
• Dr. Yoni Barnhard
• Dr. Mark Barone
• Matthew & Julia Beebe
• Lien and Anton Blinkoff
• Kristine Bohling
• Pieter Bonnemaijer
• Mark Boon
• Melinda Bostwick
• Dr. John Brothers
• Nick Burlingame
• Alexandra Cairns
• Alison and Terry Cairns
• Alison Carlman
• Allen Chan
• Carolyn Chandler
• Cynthia Childs and Rolf Orsagh
• Lynne Clark
• Michael and Karylene Close
• Drs. Tomas and Carmela Cordero
• Michael and Ruth Crotty
• Patricia D'Agostino
• Leslie L. Davidson
• Edward J. Davis
• Mira Dewji
• Danelle Dommer
• Alice Eskins
• Paige Fleming
• Lori Florian
• Anthony Fuller
• Elizabeth Gilbert
• Paul Glist
• Timothy Godfrey
• Claude Goetz
• Josh Goldfein
• Steven Greenwald
• Steve Griffen
• Diego Gutierrez
• Steven Hatfield
• Peter Haylock
• The Heise Family
• David Hill
• Leslie Jucovics
• Rohan K. Mehta
• Joyce Kafanabo
• Elizabeth D. Keating
• George Kevlin
• Chris and Tammy Kita
• Abbey and Michael Kocan
• Mark and Linda Kocan
• Victor Kovner
• Merila Latterell
• Reggie Lenoir and Sheila Wofsy
• Jonathan Lewis
• Charles and Deborah Llewellyn
• Lynn Loacker
• Tom Longe
• Akira Maeda
• James H. Mann
• Devika Mathrani
• Hugh McCullough
• Mira Mehes
• Julie Miller
• Joanne Moore
• Ronald G. Morris
• Paige Navarro
• Timothy Ostrander
• David Parkes
• Conrad Person
• Dan Polidore
• Patricia H Potts
• John and Louise Riber
• Ronald Richards
• Anne Robinson
• Elena Rubinov
• Ramon Sandovall III
• Lee and Linda Schiller
• Martha Schrader
• Zachary Schwan
• Robert Schwed
• Mary Shatzer
• Steve and Debby Seaboyer
• Adrian Stewart and Tara Cohen-Stewart
• Marquise Stillwell and Randi Zinn
• Dr. Laura Swash
• Matt Tannin
• Erwin Telemans
• George Thompson
• Scot and Jennifer Tucker
• Kathleen and Brian Vieira
• Tyler Woebkenberg
• Ed Yelochan

Read Case Study: Aden ↓

Soon after Aden was born, his parents noticed his feet turned downward. Aden’s three older siblings were not born with the condition, and his parents had never seen a baby with clubfoot before. They were not sure what to do, and feared how the impairment would affect Aden’s mobility and growth.

To their great relief, doctors referred Aden to CCBRT. Aden was just 10-days-old when he visited CCBRT’s Disability Hospital for the first time. Aden’s mother remembers being impressed with how diligently the nurses got to work. They did not delay in starting Aden’s first casting, the first step of the clubfoot correction process.

Treatment for clubfoot is a lengthy process, requiring long term commitment from both a child’s family and clinicians to ensure a good outcome. After Aden’s second casting one week later, the doctor prescribed two more rounds of casting.

One month after Aden’s first visit, his mother and nurses were thrilled to see his progress. They decided he should progress from casting to braces, what Aden’s mother calls his “clubfoot shoes”. The clinicians taught Mama Aden how to fasten the shoes and advised her to return to clinic every week as Aden’s feet adjusted.

The impact of the braces on Aden’s feet was apparent at his subsequent appointment. “The change is very big and we are so happy!” said Mama Aden, beaming. The improvement was so drastic that Aden was already eligible for the next stage of braces.

CCBRT and Aden’s relationship will continue to grow for years to come. The team that treated him as a newborn will monitor his progress throughout his life, making sure he has the mobility and freedom to explore his new world.

Read Case Study: Erika ↓

Erika lives with her family on the outskirts of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania’s largest city. When Erika was five-years-old, she started to complain to her mother about a pain in her eyes whenever she was in the sunshine. The pain got gradually worse, until Erika became extremely sensitive to light. Erika’s mother, Renata, had heard of CCBRT, a specialist provider of eye services. Renata took her daughter to the hospital, where doctors discovered Erika had a cataract, and would need surgery. Renata’s first instinct? Concern about how she was going to pay for the treatment: “My husband repairs cars, and I stay at home with the children. I was fearful that the little money we had would not be enough to pay for Erika’s surgery.”

CCBRT’s mission is to serve every patient in need, regardless of their ability to pay. The team immediately put Renata’s mind at rest: Erika’s surgery would be heavily subsidized. Erika was treated two days later. After Erika’s surgery, Renata said, “I want to send her to pre-school next year, and now I know she will be able to read just like her classmates. I know she will be a very bright student.”

Read Case Study: Fina ↓

Fina is a 40-year-old farmer from Lake Victoria, in Tanzania’s far northwest corner. Fina was 24-years-old when she was pregnant with her first child. Her voice drops as she says, “I endured labor pains for three days. My husband called for a midwife who came to our home.” On the fourth day, Fina was still in intense pain, and increasingly weak and exhausted. Her husband tried to take her to a hospital, which was far from her village. They cycled to the bus station in another town, but when bus drivers saw Fina’s condition, they told her she couldn’t use the bus. After hours of waiting, a bus driver finally let them on and they traveled to the hospital where Fina gave birth. Her baby did not survive. “I cried a lot. It was a bad day.”

The next day, exhausted and grief-stricken, Fina and her husband went to his family’s home nearby, where she realized she was leaking urine. Fina was confused. “I didn’t know what was happening to me. I explained it to my mother-in-law, who took me to the hospital a week later.” The doctors Fina saw told her they couldn’t do anything to help. Back home at her in-laws’ house, the leaking continued and after a few days her mother-in-law told her to leave and go back to her family as she could not tolerate her condition any more. On hearing that his wife was leaking urine, Fina’s husband left her. She was alone and went back home to live with her father and stepmother. Fina’s father took her to a local hospital, where doctors wrote a referral note to another hospital further away. It was there that doctors explained to Fina that she had two holes between her birth canal, bladder and urinary tract, and admitted her for surgery to repair just one of the holes. Back at home, Fina’s stepmother was increasingly embarrassed by her stepdaughter’s condition and eventually forced Fina to leave the house. “I asked myself many questions. Where will I go? How am I going to survive? Neither my relatives nor my friends want to stay with me. I cried bitterly”, Fina said in a low voice.

Fina decided to take her future into her own hands. She sought employment as a cleaner. Despite her condition, she worked for three years, bought her own land and began to build a house. She began a career as a farmer. At a party in her village earlier this year, one of Fina’s neighbors asked her why she washed her clothes every day. Fina explained that she had been leaking urine since giving birth 16 years ago. Fina’s neighbor shared that her daughter had experienced the same problem, and received free surgery and treatment at CCBRT in Dar es Salaam. She gave Fina the number of a nurse who could put her in contact with a CCBRT ambassador. The next day, an ambassador received money for Fina’s bus trip to Dar es Salaam via M-PESA, a mobile money transfer system. In July 2016, Fina underwent surgery at CCBRT Disability Hospital to repair her fistula. It was successful and she is delighted: “I am so happy that I am recovering from fistula after suffering for all these years. I like the services and care I have received here. Asante (thank you) CCBRT and other supporters!”

Read Case Study: Rhoda ↓

Now 23-years-old, Rhoda lives in Dar es Salaam. In 2011, she became pregnant for the first time. When she went into labor, Rhoda’s mother and father took her to a nearby hospital. Rhoda experienced complications, and the doctors and nurses were overwhelmed and unable to manage the complications. Rhoda was in labor for five days. Tragically, she lost her child during the delivery. As a result of the prolonged labor, Rhoda also developed a fistula. At first, she did not want to tell her mother, but eventually, she explained her condition to her family. They took her to another hospital to see if the doctors could help. A doctor told Rhoda that the fistula was caused by her stubbornness; he explained that she must have refused to be stitched after her delivery, as that was the only reason she could be living with a fistula. When she tells the story of this visit, Rhoda stops for a moment to collect herself, “My heart is beating so fast talking about it.”

Fortunately, another doctor in the hospital, Dr. Robert, was a member of CCBRT’s Maternal and Newborn Healthcare Capacity Building Program. Dr. Robert came to the hospital to see Rhoda. He explained that fistula is a treatable medical injury, and that she could receive surgery free of charge at CCBRT’s Disability Hospital. Rhoda was admitted to CCBRT’s Disability Hospital on a Friday. The following Monday, she received surgery to successfully repair her fistula.

When Rhoda was discharged from the Disability Hospital, CCBRT staff asked if she wanted to join the Mabinti Centre, where she would learn vocational skills like sewing, beading, and crochet, as well as business and English, in order to start her own business and become financially independent. Rhoda agreed to join the year-long training program, where she met other women who had recovered from fistula and who had learned how to become small business owners. Upon graduation from The Mabinti Centre, Rhoda began selling small bags and pouches at a market in Morogoro. When she became pregnant for the second time, she went to Amana Hospital, one of CCBRT’s 23 partner facilities, for an antenatal care appointment. There, she met Dr. Timothy, another member of CCBRT’s Capacity Building Program, who spoke with her about her medical history and ensured that she would have a safe and respectful delivery. Staff gave her a date for her Caesarean section delivery, required for all pregnant women who have a history of obstetric fistula. On the day of her delivery, the doctors insisted that Rhoda was first on the operating list, and she came out of surgery with a healthy baby boy, Jamil. Speaking of her experience at Amana Hospital, Rhoda says, “I am so grateful. They treated me so well, and I felt so special. Without the help of the doctors at Amana and at CCBRT, women like me who once had fistula would be lost in the village.”

Read Case Study: Sister Intisar ↓

Sister Intisar was inspired to pursue nursing when her grandmother became ill. "I studied hard and decided to do nursing because all in all, it's the patients that I wanted to serve". Intisar witnessed her first delivery when she was still in nursing school: "From that point on I knew I would be a midwife". After graduation Intisar was recruited to join CCBRT's Maternal and Newborn Healthcare Capacity Building Program team. Since then she has received training and mentorship from senior staff, and Intisar's skills have improved. “At first I didn't know how to do vacuum deliveries, but now I am very comfortable with them”.

During the yearly external Standards Based Measurement and Recognition (SBMR) assessment, Intisar received an astounding 100% in "assisting normal labor". CCBRT midwife trainer Dorcas noted, "Intisar is a champion of delivery and resuscitating newborns".

A case that stood out for Intisar was a woman who had previously miscarried and developed obstetric fistula. After receiving treatment at CCBRT, she became pregnant again. The mother kept asking her, "Will I get my baby? Will I get my baby?” At 38 weeks she went into labor in one of Dar es Salaam’s regional hospitals. Intisar worked with her colleagues to do everything they could, and the team eventually performed a C-section. "We got a lovely baby boy" Intisar reported, smiling. "When I get a healthy baby I always clap and cheer, I just can't help myself!" She reflected, "I want all mothers to have safe respectful care. I want every mother to enjoy giving birth - not regard it as a punishment". When asked about her dreams for maternal and newborn health in Tanzania, Intisar quietly declared, "Seriously, I want zero deaths".

Read Case Study: Esther ↓

23-year-old Esther lives very close to the Buguruni Health Center in Dar es Salaam. Buguruni has an impressive track record of quality improvement: before CCBRT’s capacity building activities began, it scored 12% on the baseline Standards Based Management Recognition assessment, but it now scores 95%. Esther is very happy with the transformation in Buguruni’s services and standards. She rests with her newborn baby daughter, delivered at Buguruni the day before. Her first-born son was also delivered at the facility. She is delighted with her treatment there and the services provided: “The nurses here are so humble. I attend clinics here and they provide medicine as well. Here there is proper education for pregnant women: it is very freeing to be empowered with knowledge. I would love it if my new daughter became a teacher one day, but first I must decide on a name!”