IT TAKES A VILLAGE: Dr. Blaise Dondji provides healthcare to his home in Bawa, Cameroon
the clinic in Bawa. ise Dondji, Left: Doctors at e. Right: Dr. Dondji and Francin
Photos Courtesy of Dr. Bla
Written by Katherine Camarata Senior Reporter
BACKGROUND Dr. Blaise Dondji has studied all over the globe and impacted many lives with his wife Francine Dondji and their children, Michel-Adrien, Camille and Dema, by his side. He returns what he learns and earns to the village where he was born and raised: Bawa, Cameroon. According to the Bawa Health Initiative (BHI) website,
“Bawa is a rural village of over 400 people in the West Province of Cameroon, Africa.” Citizens of Bawa belong to the Bamiléké tribe, one out of hundreds of ethnic groups in Cameroon. Dondji fills many roles in this community: co-founder and president of the BHI, immunology professor at CWU and advisor to the Pre-Med Club. Be-
fore working at CWU, Dondji obtained a doctorate from the University of Jos in Nigeria, conducted research at Hadassah Medical School in Jerusalem and later worked on vaccine development of sunlight-activated insecticides at the University of Paris-Sorbonne, France. In 2002, Dondji began working at the Yale School of Medicine
in the Public Health Department developing vaccines against infectious diseases, and later at the Section of Infectious Disease. In 2008, Dondji and his family moved to Ellensburg to share his knowledge at CWU. In 2016, Dondji received the Force of Nature award from the College of the Sciences and in 2018 the Mentor of the Year award from CWU.
icated his life savings to create the BHI. “If God gives me the chance, I will never let this happen to another pregnant woman,” Dondji said. Dondji committed his life to the mission of helping his home, with his wife Francine providing support to his endeavors. “I decided I will use any resources I find to help him,” Francine said. “A woman should not die after giving birth.” The foundation started by providing bednets to the village, to reduce the spread of insect-borne diseases like malaria. The foundation expanded to provide sand-based water filters and pigs to local farmers, as well as HIV prevention. These efforts have proven successful according to the BHI website, as the rate of malaria in Bawa has decreased by over 50% since they started
sending bednets in 2006. The foundation helped prevent malnourishment and helped numerous women deliver babies successfully, according to their website. “Between 2007 and 2010, the prevalence of anemia in Bawa was reduced from 75.8% to 49.1%,” according to the BHI website. Dondji’s goals became further realized when the clinic was built in Bawa in 2017. The clinic is staffed by nurses and volunteers ranging from neuro pediatricians to OBGYNs, according to Dondji. The facility has become a charging station for electronic devices in the area. Fees and medicine prices at the clinic are reasonable for patients. For those who can’t afford to pay, the BHI provides free services. “Nobody should be sent away because they can’t afford care,” Dondji said.
BAWA HEALTH INITIATIVE Dondji was inspired to form the BHI while in Connecticut, as a solution for the lack of healthcare in Bawa he experienced as a child. In particular, the death of Dondji’s mother was the driving force behind the creation of the BHI. “She passed away in my village after giving birth to my younger sister, because no nurse attended to maladies in my village when I was growing up,” Dondji said. “My mom gave birth, bled and before they could find a car that could take her to town in Dschang where there was a hospital, it was too late. I was just 12, but that told me that something is wrong. There should be healthcare, there should be a clinic, there should be something.” Dondji’s parents, Tanefouet Tsafack and Awounkeu Sophie, inspired him and taught
him to strive to be the best at whatever he did; he carried these lessons with him throughout his life. “Even though she passed when I was young, [my mom] instilled in us how hard work, commitment, honesty, so many things that can help a child grow,” Dondji said. “My dad was a very wise person. He also instilled in us how to work hard.” The BHI is a nongovernmental organization founded in 2005 by Dondji and co-founder Dr. Dennis Richardson. Their mission is to provide healthcare supplies, education, transportation to clinics and physicians to Bawa, according to the BHI website. Dondji said he told his friend, Richardson, about life in Bawa one day after dinner while they discussed food waste. Richardson was moved by his story and ded-