World Health Day: Saving lives with critical health services in southeastern Myanmar

To mark World Health Day, which is celebrated April 7, Pact Myanmar is proudly highlighting how Taw Nor Teaching Hospital, one of eight Critical Services Grants (CSG) issued under the USAID-funded Advancing Community Empowerment project, is working hard to provide inpatient and outpatient clinical services to communities in Kayin State, including maternal, newborn and child health care.

The clinic was opened in 2017 by Global Neighbors Thailand Foundation at the request of the Karen National Union (KNU) and Karen Department of Health and Welfare (KDHW). Even with limited staffing, equipment and medicines, TNTH has served thousands of patients. It is the first Ethnic Health Organization (EHO) hospital training facility in Kayin State and seeks to become a preeminent teaching and training facility.

In addition to providing critical health services, TNTH is contributing to ACE's health systems strengthening interventions by engaging with village health clinics to increase collaboration and improve access to health services for remote communities, and working with health sector leaders to establish the hospital as a first-class secondary care teaching hospital that is aligned with the national healthcare system.