Skip to main content

Home | Reports and News | Rotary Doctor Bank and Humanitarian and Voluntary Organisation

The Rotary Doctor Bank

of Britain and Ireland

Formed in 1994 as in initiative of the then RIBI President, Rotarian David Morgan, the Rotary Doctor Bank (RDB) is a humanitarian and voluntary organisation providing medical assistance in developing countries.  The RDB maintains an active register of medical doctors and other health care professionals who are willing to work in developing countries on a voluntary basis.  Volunteer’s skills are matched with the requirements of hospitals by the Doctor Bank, who then assists with documentation and making arrangements for travel.

Contrary to reports circulating, the Rotary Doctor Bank GB&I has not ceased or suspended operations, but it continues to send both Rotarian and non Rotarian volunteers to developing countries to save lives, though on a smaller scale than in previous years. This action significantly reduced RDB funding in a single instance by £15,000 per annum, which is equivalent to 8 volunteers.   The imposition of the moratorium is the latest in a catalogue of reduction in RI Foundation grants available to the humanitarian work of the Rotary Doctor Bank.

In previous years, RDB has been able to give short term assignments to around 15 to 20 volunteer clinicians, doctors and other health care workers, who may have retired from full time employment, but are prepared to continue maintaining their skills and knowledge and assist and educate in overseas countries, at a cost of about £1800.00 per assignment.

Doctor Bank volunteers have worked in remote mission hospitals and clinics in some of the poorest African countries, using their skills to provide specialised services or general medical assistance. Volunteers are involved in treating illnesses we take for granted in the UK because they are easily cured or alleviated when proper medical attention is provided.  The work is made worse by the scourges of HIV/AIDS, Malaria and increasingly TB, with children easy targets for these killer diseases.  Every year over 200,000 people die of these diseases in Africa.  Volunteers’ work may be used to enable overworked local staff to a take a well earned rest, they may cover for other absentees and particularly the surgeons will frequently find that they are the only surgeon to visit the location during the year.  The alternative for patients may be a three day walk to the nearest government hospital, or may die.

Planned assignments have continued and are at present being carried out in locations in Malawi and Uganda, but the funding shortfall needs to be rectified to enable the demand on RDB services to continue in Africa and other parts of the developing world.