The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think anew and act anew
Abraham Lincoln
Mission Statement
The 5-2035 Global Foundation for Community Health (GFCH) is a nonpartisan not-for-profit organization dedicated to help curb CNCD in Mauritius through the 5-2035 vision; as a signature goal, to decrease diabetes prevalence in the country to 5% by year 2035. We will empower communities to work with content experts and the government through our scientific, medical, social, and philanthropic efforts and advocacy. We will enable export of 5-2035 learnings to the world.
Concordia res parvae crescunt (“In Unity, Strength”).
The 5-2035 Vision
Healthcare is an inalienable right and a collective responsibility. That’s the central thesis behind 5-2035: a comprehensive, multi-sectoral health policy blueprint to cut Type II Diabetes prevalence in Mauritius to 5% by 2035.
Our ambition goes beyond diabetes. CNCD, chronic non-communicable disease, also includes cardiovascular disease and stroke. Within a generation, we aim to improve the entire Mauritian healthcare system and quality of life. And because the model is exportable and evidence-based, 5-2035 can become a driver of the Mauritian economy too.
We’ll reach the 5-2035 goal by building grassroots community health into Mauritius’s existing health infrastructure, not replacing it. Human resources are at the heart of the model: 5-2035 calls for training or retraining 1,500 community health nurse practitioners (CHNPs) and 150 community health doctors (CHDrs), supported by a secretariat at the community health development initiative (CHDI).
Our Mission
The challenge to decrease CNCD-related preventable conditions of type II diabetes, stroke and cardiovascular diseases-and to improve the quality of life of a whole nation must begin at the point of the heart. The country has to turn inward to take stock of the hopes and aspirations it nurtures. What is her index of self-confidence in the future? A vanquished people cannot take up an endeavor of this magnitude, when world CNCD trends are moving in the opposite direction.
We’ve spent the last decade studying the CNCD pandemic in Mauritius and around the world. We’re convinced the island is uniquely positioned to become ground-zero for curbing CNCD, as a model for the rest of the world, through frugally innovative community health.
At the center of this innovation: the community health nurse practitioner (CHNP), supervised by a community health doctor (CHDr). Each CHNP cares for 1,000 citizens, working alongside a community health cell (CHC) elected from those same citizens. Three pillars guide their practice:
1) clinical excellence
2) community engagement, and
3) research and training.
At capacity, 1,500 CHNPs and 150 CHDrs, supported by public / private partners, will define frugally innovative health care delivery as a model for the world.
Core Mechanisms We Will Employ in Our Efforts to Achieve the 5-2035 Goal.
Promotion of National Unity
The promotion of national unity and social justice starts by making the 5-2035 endeavor our ‘Man to the Moon’ target.
SEED-SCALE Model
In 5-2035, we will tap into communities to incentivize individuals towards better health and quality of life for them and their children while standardizing and improving health care delivery.
Investment in Human Potential
Unlocking higher potential and enabling existing institutions to grow with the project will allow us to create buy-in from stakeholders in a fiscally-responsive manner.
Emphasis on Public-Private Partnerships
These partnerships create a cadre of socially-conscious national and international entrepreneurs to spread the message of 5-2035 in the country and the rest of the world.
Highlight Pragmatism & Frugal Innovation
The core ideas behind a movement in health; our aim encapsulates these values and strives to shed light on the criticality of pragmatism and frugal innovation.