Curran Staff Keep the Faith 

Before the Liberian civil war, Curran Lutheran Hospital was a thriving institution, providing holistic health care to the people of Zorzor, Salayea, and Belle Districts, and also the residents from neighboring towns of Guinea. The hospital offered training courses in midwifery and practical nursing. It was also responsible for the supervision of 23 smaller health center and clinics in the region. Prior to the war, the hospital, served a population of approximately 100,000. 3,000 were admitted yearly and 30,000 treated as outpatients.

Curran continued to provide health services during the early part of the war, until 1993 when fighting between the NPFL and ULIMO broke out in the area. Subsequent fighting and looting resulted in the near total destruction of the hospital and ongoing harassment and frequent displacement of the Curran staff.

The staff was displaced from Zorzor in 2000 when fighting from the war chased them out of Curran compound, first to the Lutheran Training Institute in Salayea, then to Phebe Hosptial, and finally to the IDP camps near Totota and Salala. In defiance of the state of emergency imposed on Lofa by the Liberian Government in 2000, they made several cross-border health trips to the region, immunizing and providing treatment during difficult and dangerous times.

In September 2003, the Curran staff again crossed the border to Lofa -- amidst great danger and immense human suffering -- to assess the health services situation. Well before the presence of peacekeeping forces were able to provide for their security, the staff returned to permanently stay and revitalize health services both at the base clinic in ZorZor and in surround communities.

The Curran Mobile staff is presently divided into two teams; one returning to Zorzor and a second team left behind to continue health services to the Lofa County IDPs now living in eight different displaced camps in Bong County. The skeleton staff in Lofa continues to operate under difficult circumstances, but provides basic services to residents of Zorzor and Salayea districts., including immunizations, primary eye care (focusing on the prevention of river blindness), maternal and child health care, HIV/AIDS information and trauma healing counseling. 

Poor water quality has demanded that staff travel five miles each day to find safe drinking water.  Curran vehicles, donated in 1997 and 1998, have suffered greatly because of the war and terrible road conditions in the county. Vehicle repair constitutes an extraordinary percentage of Curran’s operating budget. 

Nearly all of the buildings on the Curran compound are destroyed or heavily damaged.  Staff has been forced to cluster in one house that remains functional. UNMIL has been approached for quick impact funding to renovate seven buildings. It is anticipated that some construction may begin shortly after UNMIL is fully deployed in the area.

Administrator Timothy Cleta reports that Curran hopes to renovate one building for use as an outpatient clinic and another for a maternity center to facilitate prenatal, labor and delivery services. It is hoped that Curran can re-employ nine additional medical and nursing staff, including one doctor, three midwives, and a physician’s assistant.