MedShare International

Atlanta, GA., May 23, 2006 – MedShare International today announced the visit of the president of the Republic of Liberia, Her Excellency Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, at 11:30 am this Saturday, May 27th, 2006. President Johnson-Sirleaf’s stopover at MedShare follows a recent visit to Buchanan Hospital in Monrovia, Liberia, where she saw, first hand, the donation of urgently needed medical supplies and surgical equipment sent by MedShare. The medical supplies arrived to support services to one of the poorest countries of the world that continues to be devastated by HIV/AIDS. Johnson-Sirleaf’s visit to MedShare International is one arranged by the Managing Director of MedShare, Ms. Nell Diallo, to dialogue about future medical shipments from MedShare International. Ms. Diallo expects to announce the donation of at least one 40-foot container of medical supplies valued at well over $250,000 to the Republic of Liberia. MedShare International is currently arranging corporate sponsorships for the donated medical supplies.

MedShare International, a seven year old Decatur-based nonprofit organization, has created a medical-supply recycling program that helps everyone involved, the hospital donating surplus medical supplies and equipment that would otherwise be discarded due to regulatory requirements, and the recipient hospitals in the economically developing world that often function with dangerously low or no supplies and equipment.

"The equipment and supplies MedShare is able to recycle and donate is very valuable to hospitals in countries like Liberia, because the need is so great, oftentimes the difference between life and death" said A.B. Short, the organization's co-founder and CEO. Short explained MedShare's twofold purpose. "One part is humanitarian," he said. "The other is environmental, because these medical products would end up in our landfills. So we benefit locally from MedShare recycling it, and people benefit internationally because it improves the quality of their health care." MedShare, which began operations in early 1999, recently relocated to a new 48,500-square-foot facility. It works regularly with a growing list of about 70 hospitals, including 20 in metro Atlanta. The hospitals benefit from knowing they're helping save lives in other countries. In some rural areas of the developing world where surgeons are washing and reusing surgical gloves because of shortages, according to Short, the more hospital and manufacturing participants, the better. Not only is MedShare a giving organization, but an efficient one as well. "We use a web-based inventory system," Short said. "When we're putting together a shipment, the receiving institution chooses, box-by-box, what is needed and goes into their container." In addition to medical supplies and surgical items, MedShare also ships medical equipment. This donated equipment, always in working condition, becomes available when hospitals discard equipment due to technological advances and program expansions.

The Rebublic of Liberia is located in Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Cote d'Ivoire and Sierra Leone. In August 2003, a comprehensive peace agreement ended 14 years of civil war. After two years of rule by a transitional government, in late 2005 Liberians elected the first woman president on the African continent. Harvard-educated and former World Bank economist, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, was sworn into office in January 2006. Expectations are high for the future, but by most measures the war torn Liberia will continue its struggle with poverty and noticeable change will take time. The reconstruction of infrastructure and the raising of incomes in this ravaged economy will largely depend on generous financial support and technical assistance from donor countries. According to the U.S. State Department, hospitals and medical facilities are very poorly equipped and are incapable of providing even basic services at this time. Emergency services comparable to those in the U.S. or Europe are non-existent, and the blood supply is unreliable and unsafe for transfusion. Medicines are scarce, often beyond expiration dates, and generally unavailable in most areas. Liberian hospitals provide care to tens of thousands who suffer from diseases related to extreme poverty and those related to HIV/AIDS. The delivery of the much-needed medical product to support critical lifesaving hospital functions is made possible through a donation through the MedShare Container Sponsorship Program.

For more information about MedShare International, MedShare’s container sponsorship program, or Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf’s visit to MedShare, please contact Dell Pearce at (770) 323-5858, ext. 206 or dpearce@medshare.org.