VPM medical centre was started in February 2001 to provide curative and preventative health services to Korogocho residents who otherwise have no healthcare provision.  Our centre has a clinic, a small maternity facility, an in-patient ward and a well-equipped laboratory and pharmacy. The Centre is open 24 hours a day with eight staff : 3 nurses, a laboratory technician, 2 nurse aides and 2 security guards.

The clinic has around 25 maternity patients per month, and treats about 650 patients on an in-patient, and out-patient basis.   Frequent diseases that the clinic treats are water borne diseases; typhoid, dysentry, diarrhoea, Bilharzia, Sexually transmitted diseases, malaria, meningitis . Most of our patients are HIV positive, and many of these prevalent diseases hit them so hard that many die if they are not treated quickly and appropriately.

Donations given towards the expenses of the clinic go a long way!  We get our medicine and medical supplies from Mission for Essential Drug and Supplies {MEDS}.  Meds is a Christian medical charity non- profit making which was formed in conjunction with the Catholic Secretariat and Christian Health Association of Kenya (CHAK).  MEDS sells medicine and medical supplies at a subsidized cost to charitable Christian organisations working among the very poor people in slums and remote areas of Kenya.

Needs : Despite this subsidy, VPM's monthly expenditure on medicine and medical supplies is £500 pounds or $1000. On top of this we need to pay our staff.  Those who attend the Medical Centre are asked to contribute to the costs of their treatment. Although many cannot afford even greatly subsidized costs, no-one is turned away for lack of money. Keeping the clinic supplied with sufficient drugs to treat the patients that come has been a very difficult endeavour.