Updates from the Field: Psychiatry Department Travels to Lesotho

 Early this March, Dr. David Henderson and Dr. Christina Borba joined Dr. Brian Jack, Professor and Chair of the Department of Family Medicine at the Boston University School of Medicine and Boston Medical Center on a trip to Lesotho. Lesotho is a small, mountainous country in southern Africa that is entirely surrounded by South Africa and is home to around two million people. In travelling with Dr. Jack, who is also the Director of the Lesotho-Boston Health Alliance (LeBoHA), Drs. Henderson and Borba were able to glimpse the current development of mental health services within various district hospitals across the country including Leribe, Berea, Mafeteng and Maluti Hospitals.

Left to Right: Dr. Jack, Dr. Sebaka Malope (the first graduate from Lesotho’s Family Medicine Residency Program), a Psychiatric Nurse from Leribe’s District Hospital, Dr. Henderson, and Dr. Borba.

In addition to touring Lesotho’s district hospitals and meeting with hospital clinicians and administrators, Drs. Henderson and Borba had the opportunity to meet with representatives from the Lesotho Ministry of Health and from the World Health Organization (WHO) and USAID to discuss potential areas for future collaboration and partnership. On March 2nd, Drs. Henderson and Borba presented at Grand Rounds at the Lehakoe Club in Maseru on the topic of, “Building Mental Health Capacity in Global Settings.” Grand rounds were open to all health professionals in Lesotho.