July 9, 2012
Press Contact: Lilly Ghahremani and Fred Ascher
lilly@realmedicinefoundation.org
(310) 663-6756
INTERNATIONAL AID ORGANIZATION CELEBRATES SOUTH SUDAN’S FIRST INDEPENDENCE DAY WITH HISTORIC STUDENT CLASS
July 9, 2012 – LOS ANGELES, CA – Today internationally acclaimed humanitarian relief and development organization Real Medicine Foundation joins in celebrating South Sudan’s first anniversary of its independence day. The organization has a close history with the new nation, where its CEO and Founder Dr. Martina Fuchs has just returned from visiting with the students, faculty, and staff of Juba College of Nursing and Midwifery (JCONAM), the first ever accredited healthcare training institute there.
Fuchs visited with JCONAM’s first two classes of students in the 3-year Registered Nursing and Midwifery diploma program. The need for nurses and midwives is severe in South Sudan, which has experienced a destruction of its professional skilled care services as a result of more than two decades of civil strife and war in addition to experiencing one of the top maternal mortality rates in the world. The JCONAM school, co-Founded and Supported by Real Medicine Foundation, offers a crucial backbone for the healthcare system of the fledgling nation.
“For every 100,000 live births in South Sudan, 2,054 women die. The shortcomings in maternal and child care are affecting public health and the community,” Fuchs says. “With the JCONAM model, we have started to strategically close the gap on maternal healthcare in South Sudan with a plan that will continually bring highly qualified medical personnel into service.”







