Why Dandora

Our History and Our Values

Our Goal

In response to the community’s desperate need for professional healthcare access, we responded by spearheading the effort to build a maternal-child health center for the community of Dandora, Kenya. We sought out and connected resources with need and ultimately delivered a top-rated hospital serving the entire population of Dandora and beyond.

Nairobi, the fast growing capital of Kenya, has recently surpassed 5 million residents. Despite the city's economic growth, the urban slum of Dandora with over 300,000 residents continues to struggle under the weight of constant environmental pollution and crisis. Dandora was designated as host to the growing city's dumpsite, with 2,000 tons of garbage piled on the site each day. The situation is dire for mothers, who work amid these polluted conditions to support their families. Oftentimes these women aren’t able to afford maternity healthcare costs among the host of other issues that face this community.

With no prenatal care or assisted delivery, the risk of mortality is high for the mother and baby.

What is the Situation?

Prior to Brother Andre Hospital, healthcare options were grim

When I first visited Holy Cross Dandora Parish in 2011, I was perplexed by the juxtaposition of the poverty in this neighborhood compared to the hospitality and gratitude expressed by its Parishioners.

One of eight Millennium Development Goals identified by the UN was to improve maternal health and reduce child mortality. Nearly 15 years ago, Kenya’s maternal mortality rate was unacceptably high at 488 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, and Dandora’s MMR was even higher. To compare, the U.S. rate is 19 per 100,000 live births. A place for safe, clean births and sustained health for expectant and new mothers and their young children was an enduring dream for this community.

Impassioned with the possibility of efforts toward social justice, I envisioned Dandora Area Wellness Alliance, Inc. (now New DAWN Africa) as a step toward empowerment and a chance for renewed hope for wellness, physically and emotionally. On July 7, 2014 we broke ground to commence building the Maternal-Child Hospital of our dreams.

- Jill Tabit, Co Founder of New DAWN Africa

History

Good healthcare access translates to wellness for the entire community.

We aim to deliver more than healthy babies; we aim to deliver an enduring sense of health and wellness, respect, dignity, empowerment, and most of all, hope.

Our Values:

Access: Ensuring that all mothers and babies, regardless of income, location, or social status, have reliable, affordable, and timely access to essential healthcare services.

Compassion: Delivering healthcare with empathy and understanding, Compassion involves treating every mother with dignity, acknowledging cultural contexts, and offering emotional as well as medical support during vulnerable times.

Hope: Hope is the driver of initiatives like New DAWN that break cycles of poverty and preventable deaths and prove that change is possible through care, education, and community engagement. It is a belief in healthier futures for mothers and their children.

Resilience: Resilience means building community-led solutions that enable mothers to survive and thrive despite challenging socio-economic and health environments. It is developing the ability of healthcare systems to withstand systemic barriers.

Support: Providing a system of community support that brings together Brother Andre Staff, supporting their careers through educational opportunity. This allows us to provide holistic support systems - medical, emotional, financial, and social - for mothers and families

Empowerment: Empowering the community by providing jobs and opportunities in healthcare, and enabling women with the knowledge, resources, and confidence to make informed decisions about their health and their children’s wellbeing.