One Family Health ModelA unique public-private partnership with Rwanda's Ministry of Health

In mountainous Rwanda, the average family walks two hours or more to reach the nearest health facility. Evidence shows that, when forced to walk long distances, people seek healthcare later and less often. The result is that preventable diseases occur and treatable illnesses become life-threatening. One Family Health is working to eliminate this access barrier. By opening primary health clinics in rural communities, we bring essential medicines and healthcare services to the most vulnerable and underprivileged populations. By increasing access to basic medical intervention, our clinics play a crucial, often lifesaving role in the communities we serve.

One Family Health recruits, trains, and supports qualified nurses to become business owners. We provide nurse-franchisees with access to start-up financing, training on clinical and management skills, and provide ongoing monitoring and support to ensure adherence to high-quality standards. One critical tool One Family Health provides is access and training on the use of an electronic health record system, that facilitates record keeping and clinic management. Supporting nurses to own and operate primary healthcare clinics enables them to improve their economic status and access to other opportunities. We support Franchisees by enhancing their business acumen and furthering their capacity to organize and manage their business. Franchisees are trained to manage their clinic finances and personnel, medicine stocks, patient health records, and interactions with health authorities.

Our nurses use patient consultations as an opportunity to improve patients’ health knowledge and literacy by helping them to better understand their conditions, root causes and what preventative steps can be taken in the future. This education positively impacts both the individual patient’s health and the entire community as hygiene and disease prevention habits improve over time. We also provide this education proactively to the local communities we serve. When there are recurrent illnesses within the wider community, OFH nurses coordinate with local authorities to organize health workshops aimed at prevention and containment.