Shamberere Health Center

Project Status

Project Type: Borehole Well and Hand Pump

Regional Program: Western Kenya WaSH Program

Impact: 300 Served

Project Phase: In Service - Jan 2025

Functionality Status: Functional

Project Features

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The 300 staff members and patients of Shambere Health Center work tirelessly to provide water that isn't safe for medical or personal use, but they have no better option.

A hand-dug well on the clinic premises requires lowering a jerrican into the water and pulling the heavy jug back up each time water is needed. It is a tiresome chore that causes medical workers to neglect patient care.

"The mouth is too wide, which can cause injury to patients or children who might try to fetch water. The hand-dug well is seasonal [and] thus dries up during [the] drought season," said field officer Amos Emisiko.

There is also a small rainwater tank, but it's not large enough to hold sufficient water to meet the clinic's needs.

Amos continued, "The health facility, despite having [a] small infrastructure, has the second highest number of people who seek medical care in the sub-county of Malava. The hospital has very hard-working clinical officers who attend to patients well and thus receive high numbers."

Lack of water interrupts medical care for the community. Medical staff member Wesonga Pius (shown below) said, "When we lack water completely, we close down the hospital. All medical processes in the school require water. We lack water for cleaning, cooking, and other activities."

Without enough water for patient care and sanitation, the Shambere Health Center can't provide the medical care the community and a nearby school need.

But lack of water isn't the Shambere Health Center's only problem. The water they can collect is often contaminated.

Amos continued, "The hand dug well in the hospital has a lead cover on the top. People use rope and buckets to draw water; using the same rope with many people is not clean [it] contaminates [the] water.

Water-related illnesses are often the reason people seek medical care, but when the clinic they visit has contaminated water, it doesn't create a healing environment.

Margaret S. (seen below) shared her experience. "I have come to be treated [when] I have malaria. The doctor was advising me to use the water in the filter to take medicines. The water in that hand-dug well is not clear, and it smells when you drink it directly without it being filtered or treated."

Installing the new borehole well will enable staff like Wesonga to create a more effective and healing environment. Patients like Margaret will no longer consume contaminated water and can focus again on getting well.

The Proposed Solution, Determined Together...

At The Water Project, everyone has a part in conversations and solutions. We operate in transparency, believing it benefits everyone. We expect reliability from one another as well as our water solutions. Everyone involved makes this possible through hard work and dedication.

In a joint discovery process, community members determine their most advantageous water solution alongside our technical experts. Read more specifics about this solution on the What We're Building tab of this project page. Then, community members lend their support by collecting needed construction materials (sometimes for months ahead of time!), providing labor alongside our artisans, sheltering and feeding the builders, and supplying additional resources.

Water Access for Everyone

This water project is one piece in a large puzzle. In Kenya, Sierra Leone, and Uganda, we're working toward complete coverage of reliable, maintained water sources that guarantee public access now and in the future within a 30-minute round trip for each community, household, school, and health center. One day, we hope to report that this has been achieved!

Training on Health, Hygiene & More

With the community's input, we've identified topics where training will increase positive health outcomes at personal, household, and community levels. We'll coordinate with them to find the best training date. Some examples of what we train communities on are:

Improved hygiene, health, and sanitation habits
Safe water handling, storage & treatment
Disease prevention and proper handwashing
Income-generation
Community leadership, governance, & election of a water committee
Operation and maintenance of the water point

Handwashing Stations

Alongside each water source, we also provide two new gravity-fed handwashing stations that will allow everyone at the health center to wash their hands without running water. Handwashing is so important to help prevent illnesses, especially at a health center where hygiene is critical to vulnerable patients.

The health center staff will maintain the stations, fill them with water, and supply them with soap.

Project Updates

January, 2025: Shamberere Health Center Well Complete!

Your contribution has given access to clean water for the Shamberere Health Center in Kenya, thanks to the completion of their borehole well! Staff, patients, and their families are already using the well’s flowing water, which will provide the health center with a reliable water source for all of its daily needs.

"For me, as a staff in this facility, this new waterpoint will assist me in ascertaining that the first doses of medication given to patients are taken from the hospital. This will help the patients recover in good time and avoid complications due to late medication administration," shared clinician Kennedy Wesonga, 34.

Kennedy Wesonga.

Seventeen-year-old Pamela, a former patient, was excited to share how the new waterpoint will improve her life.

"I have been a frequent visitor to the hospital seeking medical attention. This has been contributed to largely by the inadequacy of clean and safe water that has been the reason for me being treated severally for typhoid," she said.

Pamela (in red) collecting water at the new well.

"The new waterpoint will help my parents save funds that they have been spending on my treatment and investing it in a profitable venture. I will no longer be as sickly as I used to be. My academics will improve a lot because I will have time to attend all classes and partake in all assignments timely," she continued.

How We Got the Water Flowing

Staff and community members all contributed to this well’s success. After determining the best site for the well through a hydrogeological survey, we obtained approval from the government to begin drilling.

To prepare, everyone helped collect fine sand and water for cement-making. Our drill team and staff arrived at the center to begin work when everything was ready.

"The community participation was great. Their local material mobilization was unmatched. Their quest and thirst for water were very evident in their generous support and supply of locally available materials," shared Field Officer Hosborn Bwana.

Drilling.

Drilling started with excitement in the air. We continued drilling to reach a final depth of 110 meters with a final static water level of 25 meters.

The drilling process can take up to three consecutive days to complete due to this region’s hard bedrock, so the drill team set up a camp where they could rest and refuel.

Flushing the well.

Once we reached the required depth, a permanent casing was installed, and the dirty water at the bottom of the well was bailed out. Workers installed pipes, flushed them, tested the well’s yield, and chlorinated the water.

Constructing a cement pad for the well pump.

After chlorination, we constructed a cement well pad to seal it off from any ground-level contaminants. Tiles were installed beneath the spout to protect the cement from the erosive force of the water.

We included a short drainage channel and a soak pit to carry spilled water away from the pump and prevent standing water.

Installing the well pump.

When the well pad was dry, we installed a new stainless steel hand pump and performed a water quality test. The results showed this water was safe for drinking!

The enthusiasm for this much-anticipated project was overwhelming. We officially gave ownership of the new borehole to health center staff and the local community members.

Everyone celebrated the health center’s new water source. The celebration was a great opportunity to acknowledge the staff and remind them of our continued support. Happiness, thanksgiving, and appreciation were the order of the day, flowing in all directions.

"The ceremony was very colorful with good, alluringly scented fresh flowers smiling at the morning sunrise. The facility staff, nurses, clinicians, and support staff adorned in their service delivery regalia passed across the facility compound, finalizing the preparations. By mid-morning, the tent [was] set aside for dignitaries (area members of [the] county assembly and the clergy) [and] was packed to capacity. The community health volunteers were in their groups rehearsing their skit before the function began. Then, the master of ceremony called the entire place to order, and the function began. Songs of praises and ululation colored the air in honor of their water project," said Field Officer Bwana.

Community Education

We scheduled hygiene and sanitation training with the health center staff. When the training day arrived, field officers Hosborn Bwana and Mutuku Daniel deployed to the site to lead the event. 20 people attended the training.

During our training, we covered a range of essential topics, including personal, oral, food, and environmental hygiene. We discussed disease prevention strategies, the ten-step handwashing protocol, and the construction of handwashing facilities. Additionally, we talked about safe water handling, maintenance and operation of water points, as well as principles of leadership and governance.

Learning to make soap.

"The participants were very committed and so enthusiastic about the hygiene training that the session became very lively and interactive. Most questions and answers emerged from amongst them all through the session. When myths and misconceptions arose, we stepped in to demystify them to the best of our knowledge backed with scientific facts," said Field Officer Bwana.

Learning about solar water disinfection.

"Dental hygiene prompted most discussion from the participants. When we introduced the topic, many were very attentive. Then one of them raised up his hands to comment on the same and said he usually uses a brush made from wet guava sticks and charcoal as his toothpaste. Many tried to shut him down for being a jocker until we explained to them the alternative toothpaste and toothbrushes," he continued.

Dental hygiene session.

"Handwashing was the most interesting topic covered in the hygiene training. It caught my attention after I realized that we had been doing the wrong thing: washing our hands from the same basin and passing it around the table. We have always thought that as long as it is not visibly dirty, it can still be used when that is not the case," shared participant Desima Khaveye, a 25-year-old vegetable vendor.

Thank you for making all of this possible!

December, 2024: Exciting Progress at Shamberere Health Center!

We’re thrilled to share that, thanks to your generous support, significant change is coming for the entire Shamberere Health Center. Construction has begun on the well, bringing them one step closer to having clean, reliable water.

But that's not all—during construction, we’re also providing vital health training. These sessions equip the staff and community members with essential hygiene practices, ensuring that the benefits of clean water extend to lasting health improvements.

We’re so grateful for your role in making this possible. Stay tuned for more updates—soon, we’ll be celebrating the arrival of safe water at Shamberere Health Center!

Project Type

Abundant water is often right under our feet! Beneath the Earth’s surface, rivers called aquifers flow through layers of sediment and rock, providing a constant supply of safe water. For borehole wells, we drill deep into the earth, allowing us to access this water which is naturally filtered and protected from sources of contamination at the surface level. First, we decide where to drill by surveying the area and determining where aquifers are likely to sit. To reach the underground water, our drill rigs plunge through meters (sometimes even hundreds of meters!) of soil, silt, rock, and more. Once the drill finds water, we build a well platform and attach a hand pump. If all goes as planned, the community is left with a safe, closed water source providing around five gallons of water per minute! Learn more here!