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What we do

Health workers are at the centre of what we do. Without them, there is no health.

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Today, one billion people will never see a qualified health worker in their lives.

THET has a vision of a world where everyone has access to healthcare. We achieve this by training and educating health workers in Africa and Asia, working in partnership with organisations and volunteers from across the UK. Founded in 1988 by Professor Sir Eldryd Parry, we are the only UK charity with this focus.

Over the past nine years we have partnered with over 130 NHS Trusts, Royal Colleges and academic institutions. We work closely with the British government, and are an organisation in Official Relations with the World Health Organization.

From reducing maternal deaths in Uganda to improving the quality of hospital care for injured children in Myanmar, we work to strengthen local health systems and build a healthier future for all.

In the past nine years alone, THET has reached over 100,000 health workers across 31 countries in Africa and Asia in partnership with over 130 UK institutions.

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Please click here to read ‘Partnerships for an Interconnected World’, our Strategic Plan for 2022-2027.

Our approach

For over thirty years, we have supported Health Partnerships between UK and overseas health institutions such as hospitals, universities and research centres.

Partnerships deliver health worker training programmes based on the needs of the overseas partner institution.

UK partners have access to skilled, expert health professionals who volunteer their time to deliver training courses to overseas health workers to help improve practice and patient care.

Our partnerships.

UK health workers have volunteered

95,349

days of their time

At the centre of our work over the past three decades has been the National Health Service (NHS). In the past four years alone, over 100 NHS institutions and 2,000 NHS staff have provided more than 95,000 days of their time to work with colleagues overseas.

This work brings benefit to health systems in low and middle income countries but is also having a beneficial impact on the NHS, as NHS

staff return home with increased knowledge, improved leadership skills and a greater understanding of how to innovate in delivering healthcare with limited resources. That’s why we think volunteers work, for health, for change, for all.

If there’s mutual trust and a willingness on both sides to learn from each other, a readiness to adapt and a readiness to try new things then good work will happen

Professor Sir Eldryd Parry - Founder of THET

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