Adventist Health System - Waterloo Hospital

ized by the notorious rebels. When they left they destroyed a large part of the hospital. Patients and staff were displaced.The Adventist movement withdrew during the war and it was not possible to re-establish the hospital following the peace agreement in 2001. "The local Mission Administration in cooperation with the West African Union Mission built and opened the totally church owned Adventist Health System on church land in Waterloo. Rosten from Argentina were instrumental in organizing the Hospital and Dr. Elmer and Mrs. Ribeyro from Peru, with the help of Mercy Ships, added and equipped a wing and built hostels for visiting student missionaries." [Adapted from Our Heritage]

During his brief stint as founding head of the new hospital, Dr Elmer Ribeyro from Peru treated as many as 6,500 outpatients, undertook 10,000-laboratory tests and 1,400 surgical procedures. Dr. Ribeyro served from the year 2000 to 2007. For a long time after Dr Ribeyro left there was no fulltime physician to take his place until March 2011 when Dr Felix Ikuomola, a Nigerian based in the U.S.A., arrived. Still, the latter's coming to serve was only temporary, less than a year, until he went back to America. In the meantime, a Sierra Leonean Physician Assistant, Mr. David Koroma, manned the fort assisted by medical and paramedical volunteer expatriates from 2012 to 2017. Dr. Scott Gardner and wife Mrs. Rebecca Gardner served as Missionaries from 2016 to 2018, with a Sierra Leonean Dr. Augustine Mannah working hard from 2018 to 2019 as Medical Director. The AHI sponsored Dr. Juana Kabba, another Sierra Leonean, came back from studies as a Consultant General Surgeon in 2018, and in 2019 became the Medical Director. With expansion of the hospital to establish a Dental clinic in Freetown (by AHI), Dr. Kabba became the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Medical Director of the hospital and it's branches in 2021. Other American Missionaries currently serving in the hospital are Dr. James Fernando, a Family Physician and wife Rachel Fernando a Physician Assistant. Also, Dr. Mel Bersaba is the new Dentist and wife Melissa Bersaba. The hospital undertakes weekly community outreach programs in the form of a mobile clinic, headed by CHO James Borboh Abu to the surrounding villages around Waterloo and Orphanage. Currently, the hospital is hoping to establish a maternity unit in complementing the efforts of the Government of Sierra Leone to reduce maternal and infant mortalities which are among the highest in the world. In its 20 years of existence, the Founding Administrator was Mr. Joseph William-Lamin, and the longest serving Business Manager is Mr. Joseph Swinford Fobbie (2011 to present).