From Quincy to Kenya: How one hospital’s mission to open its doors is helping another do the same

QUINCY — One hospital working to open its doors is now helping another do the same — halfway across the world.

Quincy Medical Group (QMG) is playing a role in helping make a hospital in Kenya a reality. Collaboration between QMG president Carol Brockmiller; Ada Bair, Memorial Hospital and Hancock County Senior and Childcare Services CEO; and Bishop E.L. Warren, senior pastor of the Cathedral of Worship in Quincy, has led to the donation of medical equipment and supplies from QMG and Memorial Hospital in Carthage to two Kenyan healthcare projects — providing life-saving resources to communities with little access to care.

A significant hurdle remains: securing the funds to ship the items overseas.

The Souper Bowl of Caring was held Feb. 5, with both QMG and Memorial Hospital in partnership with Memorial Hospital Foundation offering lunch events where employees provided donations to enjoy soup. To maximize the impact, the QMG Foundation matched the contributions made by QMG employees.

“Bringing QMG Hospital to our community has always been about increasing access to care and making healthcare more affordable. Bishop Warren is leading a similar mission in Kenya — to expand healthcare access in an area where it is critically needed. Just as he has stood by us, we want to stand by him. It’s simple: we share the same mission — to serve our communities by providing quality, affordable healthcare to those who need it most,” Brockmiller said in a press release.

The donation effort is supporting two hospital projects in Kenya. The first is a women’s health and maternity hospital, designed with small birthing rooms, emergency care facilities and waiting areas to accommodate mothers in labor. It is expected to serve nearly 500,000 childbearing women. The second project involves renovating a long-vacant 400-bed hospital, expanding healthcare access to the surrounding community.

Warren has been at the forefront of these hospital projects, ensuring that medical equipment no longer in use locally can be repurposed to meet critical needs in Kenya.

“We started with nothing, and we wouldn’t be where we are today without the support of Quincy Medical Group and Memorial Hospital. The impact of this project is truly beyond words,” Warren said. “If you could see the conditions at these facilities right now — the lack of sanitation and care standards — you’d understand just how significant this donation is. Thanks to this collaboration, we’re bringing a state-of-the-art facility to provide the care that’s long overdue.”

Birthing beds, hospital beds, mobility aids, kitchen appliances and more than 15,000 surgical instruments have been donated. The shipping costs, however, remain a challenge.

“We’ve had to pause our workforce temporarily while we raise funds for the shipping costs, but the generosity shown by QMG and Memorial Hospital will help us get this equipment to Kenya so we can resume our work,” Warren said.

Bair echoed the importance of the partnership.

“We are honored to support these transformative healthcare projects in Kenya,” she said. “Our partnership with local organizations exemplifies our shared commitment to improving healthier outcomes and enhancing the well-being of communities worldwide. We believe every individual deserves access to essential healthcare services, and through initiatives like these, we strive to make that a reality.”

With the final pieces falling into place, the equipment is expected to ship in the coming weeks, with a projected arrival in May 2025.

For more information on how to support this effort, contact Warren at 217-257-6602.