Malawi

Preparations continue for Texas Children’s Hospital’s development team trip to Africa.  I’m working out the kinks for this blog to prepare and am inspired to give a BIG shout out to Aaron Baxter and Nhan Nguyen for getting me ready to share the details of our efforts in the southern part of the African continent.

Presently I am pouring over maps to make sure my geographic knowledge of the area is current.  We will be visiting Botswana, Malawi, Swaziland, and South Africa and working with the Baylor International Pediatric Aids Initiative at Texas Children’s Hospital (BIPAI) Executive Directors and their staff members.

Here is a map of Malawi, known as the “warm heart of Africa” and the first country we will be visiting:

BIPAI efforts in Malawi are led by Peter N. Kazembe.

Peter N. Kazembe, M.B.Ch.B, F.R.C.P.

Executive Director, Malawi

Dr. Peter Kazembe, a Malawian national, serves as executive director for BIPAI-Malawi, a senior lecturer at University of Malawi and associate professor at Baylor College of Medicine. He is also an adjunct professor at the University of North Carolina. Dr. Kazembe has more than 30 years of experience in the Malawi health care system, including over 15 years as head of pediatrics at Kamuzu Central Hospital, during which he also served concurrently for two years as hospital director.

Dr. Kazembe is a recognized expert on malaria, HIV and providing clinical service in resource-poor settings. He chaired the Medical Association of Malawi from 2000–2004. Dr. Kazembe is a prodigious researcher and author, having contributed to more than 40 scholarly papers. As an important figure in the Malawi public health system, he plays a critical role in promoting and representing the program to government and private sector partners to ensure sustainability of the program.