Jhpiego News Release - Healthcare worker in Afghanistan receives international outreach award

Baltimore, Md. – Sheena Currie, MEd, RM, RN—Jhpiego’s Midwifery Advisor based in Kabul, Afghanistan—received the President’s International Outreach Award from the Royal College of Midwives (RCM), the world’s oldest and largest midwifery organization. The award ceremony, hosted in London and attended by UK Health Minister Dr. Stephen Ladyman, paid tribute to the work of midwives in midwifery practice, education, and research.

Currie’s award, given in recognition of her work for HealthNet International with assistance from Jhpiego to establish a community midwifery education program in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, was a highlight of the ceremony. "Our award winners provide us with excellent examples of midwifery good practice. Midwives continue to lead the way in innovation, care, and service,” said Dame Karlene Davis, RCM General Secretary.

Dr. Leslie Mancuso, President and CEO of Jhpiego, congratulated Currie. “Sheena’s dedication to the women of Afghanistan is an inspiration to us all. We congratulate Sheena on this award, and look forward to the continued success of our midwifery programs in Afghanistan,” said Mancuso.

Currie is currently working to establish and support midwifery programs in 10 provinces in Afghanistan as part of the USAID-funded Rural Expansion of Afghanistan’s Community-based Healthcare (REACH) Program. Jhpiego’s Jeffrey Smith, MD, MPH, works closely with Currie in his role as Safe Motherhood Advisor to the program. "Here, one woman dies every 20 minutes of pregnancy related causes. Sheena answered the call to help these women and in the process has made a substantial and long lasting impact on Afghanistan," concluded Smith.

About Jhpiego
For 35 years, Jhpiego, (pronounced "ja-pie-go"), has empowered front-line health workers by designing and implementing simple, low-cost, hands-on solutions that strengthen the delivery of health care services, following the household-to-hospital continuum of care. We partner with community- to national-level organizations to build sustainable, local capacity through advocacy, policy and guidelines development, and quality and performance improvement approaches.