• Q: How can I volunteer for Slum Doctor Programme?
• A: You can volunteer at one of our events, throw your own fundraising party with friends or check out our volunteer page for more ways to get involved.

"I am so excited about the BSLA program How incredible to think that for only about $300, you can provide an AIDS widow with seeds, fertilizer, training from an agricultural extension worker, drying cribs and access to markets for 18 months!"
-SDP Supporter, Bellingham, WA

 In 2003, Slum Doctor Programme partnered with the University of Washington and the Coptic Hospital to initiate a program to treat AIDS patients in Nairobi, Kenya. At the time, anti-retroviral treatment was not yet free and inaccessible to most Kenyans. When the Hope Center for Infectious  Diseases opened there were 10 patients receiving free AIDS medication. Today, the Hope Center treats 9,000 patients and has sister clinics in Nairobi, Maseno and Mombasa. Patients at the Hope Center receive free AIDS treatment, counseling and nutritional support. Now fully funded by outside resources (PEPFAR), the Hope Center has been able to expand and create new innovative ways to provide effective healthcare addressing the complicated needs of people living with HIV/AIDS.

Treatment is not the only obstacle that people living with HIV/AIDS face. Many patients live far away from treatment centers and cannot afford to travel on a regular basis to receive the care they need. Also, people living with HIV face another battle of opportunistic infections due to their compromised immune system. Because many of these needs are not "directly" related to HIV/AIDS, they are not covered under PEPFAR funding. To address this unmet need, Slum Doctor Programme created the Tumaini Fund. Tumaini is Swahili for "Hope." 

Tumaini funds are often used for travel, emergency surgeries not directly related to HIV/AIDS, food, and any other need that arises. Read Tabitha's story to find out just how important the Tumaini Fund has been to her.

As you can see, the evolution of our partnership with the Hope Center has been very organic. As the center improves in quality and capacity, we continue to step in and fill the needs that fall through the cracks. The next large step forward at the Hope Center was the development of a Cervical Cancer Screening Program for HIV+ women. With funding from a local (Bellingham, WA) investment firm, Saturna Captial, the Cervical Cancer Screening Program has developed a model for implementing screening and treatement into other clinics around the world. This program's success has attracted international attention. One of the largest AIDS initiatives in the world (PEPFAR) is now using the Hope Center as a research site to develop this program further.

We are excited to see what comes next.

Read more about the Cervical Cancer Screening Program.

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Donate through Google checkout below or send a check with Hope Clinic in the memo to: Slum Doctor Programme, PO Box 2156, Bellingham, WA 98227 and 100% of your donation will go to the Hope Center.