How it works

Peter Hearn smiling with an African nurse
The process

Our model

  • A candidate from a rural community is selected to train as a health worker.
  • Spreading Health sponsors their training in the country.
  • On qualification they return to their community to work.

Since 2008 we have sponsored the training of 86 nurses in Cameroon and 2 in Uganda.

What we're Doing

The project

We work with our partner SHUMAS (Strategic Humanitarian Services), a Cameroon NGO (Non govt. organisation) based in Bamenda. They work in partnership with poor rural communities. SHUMAS enable communities to select a candidate for training and ensure they settle back into their community with long term follow up. Just one nurse in a community will benefit many thousands of people!

An african nurse smiling and being handed equipment
The process

Our commitments

  • Commitment from the community to propose a suitable candidate for training and to help with their travel and living expenses whilst at college. Subsequently to provide a simple clinic and to pay them to work there once they’ve qualified.
  • Commitment from the candidate to study and achieve the qualification and return to their village to work for a period of time at least equivalent to the length of their sponsored training.
  • Commitment from us to guarantee sponsorship for the duration of the course to fund SHUMAS to work with communities to make selection and to provide support/pastoral care during training, to administer Spreading Health grants and provide follow up to nurses post qualification.
Fully transparent

Where the money goes

Costs per annum per student nurse:

  • £1,420 - College fees
  • £220 - Grant for books/uniform etc
  • £160 - Project support worker in Cameroon
  • £1,800 - Total per annum

Costs per annum per qualified nurse:

  • £23 - Project support worker in Cameroon

The trustees in the UK are volunteers. The website is hosted for free. 98% of our income goes to the project, 2% on fundraising.

5 African nurses smiling, all wearing white
African children smiling and laughing
Donations & Events

Where the money comes from

We rely heavily on donations and receive no Government grants.

  • 65% - Standing order donations
  • 15% - One-off donations
  • 20% - Fundraising events
11/15/2007
Dr Peter Hearn visits Cameroon

Does a volunteer medical placement in a rural community clinic in Lui village, Oku district, in the Anglophone, North West region of Cameroon Works in a clinic serving 20,000 from a cluster of villages.

03/14/2008
Spreading health set up

Peter & Glynis Hearn and friends set up Spreading Health in March 2008.

09/28/2008
5 nurse students sponsored in Bamenda, Cameroon.

Peter and Glynis Hearn visit SHUMAS, our partner NGO in Bamenda Cameroon to review the new set up and visit the 5 new students at St Louis college.

11/15/2008
Peter & Glynis visit Cameroon

Peter and Glynis Hearn visit SHUMAS, our partner NGO in Bamenda Cameroon to review the new set up and visit the 5 new students at St Louis college.

10/20/2009
New Nurse students sponsored

In addition to the standard 3 year training, we agreed to sponsor some students for a 1 year Nursing Assistant course.

08/24/2010
First Nursing Assistants Qualify

The first 3 nursing assistants qualify from their 1 year course and return to their communities to work.

08/15/2011
First SRNs qualify

4 students qualify SRN from St Louis college and 3 more nursing assistants qualify from Capitol college Bamenda.

11/15/2011
Peter & Glynis visit Cameroon again

Peter and Glynis visit SHUMAS in Bamenda and catch up with the students currently in training.

11/21/2014
9 New SRN students sponsored

We have received a £10,000 grant from the British Medical Association (BMA) and this year are able to sponsor 9 new nursing students for the 3 year SRN course.

10/24/2015
Spreading Health run a CPD course in Bamenda

Peter and Glynis lead a Spreading Health team of volunteers from the UK to run a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) course at Shumas headquarters at Nkwen, Bamenda.

10/29/2017
Training Suspended for 1 year

Political conflict closes all schools, colleges and universities in the Anglophone sector of Cameroon.

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We aim to work in partnership with rural communities in the developing world who want to develop the health care in their villages.

UK Registered Charity Number: 1131624

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