Joseph Jatta is a nurse and public health expert in The Gambia. He currently serves as a senior research officer at the Directorate of Health Research in The Gambia’s Ministry of Health. He is focused on community service, health care advocacy, and health equity. He is a strong advocate for women’s reproductive health rights. Over his decade in the health care field, Joseph has also co-founded and led Grace Home-Based Care and acted as country director of the Slum to Rural Health Initiative. He is an alumnus of the Young African Leaders’ Initiative, where he trained in public policy and management. Joseph earned a Master of Reproductive Health from PAULESI-Pan African University Institute of Life and Earth Sciences and a bachelor’s degree from the University of the Gambia.
Applied Project Title: Improving Maternal Health Outcomes in Remote Rural Communities in The Gambia
The maternal mortality rate in The Gambia is exceptionally high, especially in rural and remote communities. This project looked at ways to improve maternal health outcomes in those regions by training community members to administer basic care; strengthening primary health care structures; training and deploying more community health nurses; and improving health education around family planning issues. The initial focus of the project identified and trained designated community members to administer basic maternal services, including ante-natal, labor, delivery and post-natal care. Jatta will be working with the Ministry of Health in the Gambia to partner with schools of nursing to recruit large numbers of students to ensure a reliable pipeline of well-trained and educated nurses and midwives moving forward.