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Liberia: Providing psychiatric care close to home
International Activity Report 2019

Liberia

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MSF in Liberia in 2019 Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) runs a paediatric hospital in the Liberian capital and implements a new model of care for people with mental health disorders and epilepsy.
Liberia

MSF opened Bardnesville Junction hospital in Monrovia, Liberia in March 2015 to address gaps in paediatric care during the Ebola epidemic. 

The 92-bed hospital continues to provide specialised care for children from a large impoverished urban area with conditions such as malaria and severe acute malnutrition. It also serves as a training site for Liberian nurses, medical interns and nurse anaesthetists.  

The team in the two operating theatres, which opened in 2018, performed a variety of procedures during the year, including urological and reconstructive plastic surgery. In 2019, we added a microbiology laboratory, which enabled us to better diagnose infectious diseases, tailor treatment for patients and monitor antibiotic resistance.   

In July, we expanded our community-based care programme for people with mental health disorders and epilepsy into a fifth location, West Point, a densely populated township in Monrovia. 

Working with the Ministry of Health, we supervised and supported clinicians to treat mental health disorders and epilepsy in general healthcare facilities, with active follow-up for patients and their families. We also assisted psychosocial workers and volunteers to provide health education on epilepsy, schizophrenia and other mental health conditions in the communities, helping patients overcome social stigma.  

In total, we treated 1,690 patients with epilepsy or mental health disorders during the year. 

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