Our Mission
Our mission is to enable dignified, affordable and high-quality healthcare for all. We are committed to an equitable health future, where clinicians around the world have the space, staff and systems they need to deliver high quality healthcare to all, regardless of location or patients’ ability to pay.
Global health organizations seeking facility support in under-resourced regions routinely face two imperfect options: importing models and methods from the Global North, designed without regard to local efficiencies, or utilizing under-resourced assets that are unable to deliver the quality and durability needed. Build Health International (BHI) offers a third alternative - a common-sense approach to infrastructure that allows for delivery of high-quality care, that can also be operated and maintained in a resource-constrained setting.
Our Guiding Principles
We work closely with our partners to plan, design, and oversee the construction of healthcare facilities in low- and middle-income countries.
We partner with organizations committed to strengthening the public healthcare system so that every person, regardless of ability to pay, has access to care.
We help our partners develop clinical and operational plans, as well as operational budgets that ensures the delivery of high-quality, comprehensive, dignified care.
We always leverage the local workforce. We hire local tradespeople and offer them training in the latest construction and maintenance methods.
We place a significant amount of our focus on renewable energy, as well as minimizing the environmental and carbon footprint of the facilities we build.
We build and maintain strong relationships and continue to work with staff and the community to advise and support long after the ribbon is cut.
We reduce costs by soliciting donated materials and leveraging volunteers when necessary, pairing them with lthe local workforce and tradespeople.
We set high standards for ourselves then we aim to exceed them, even while working in regions without easy access to materials and equipment.
Our Approach
Build Health International optimizes outcomes in a climate of scarcity, enabling our partners to provide care to those who need it most. We work to make each of our healthcare facilities a part of robust public healthcare systems that will provide long-term quality, accessible, and affordable care to the local community.
Not Just Bricks & Mortar
Beyond Infrastructure
We begin each project by helping our partners develop clinical and operational plans and assess how they best fit into building a robust and sustainable public health system. This planning defines infrastructure design and enables our partners to securely deliver high-quality, comprehensive, dignified care in the long-term.
Community & Environment
Local Solutions, Local Talent
We build with communities, by designing to meet the unique needs of each environment and by using in-country resources whenever possible. We emphasize hiring and training local workers, working continuously to impart valuable trade skills and strengthen development of the community.
Cost-Effective Energy Solutions
Energy Efficiency
Renewable, cost-effective energy solutions are environmentally friendly, sustainable, and dependable. Energy costs in resource-poor settings are often quite high, and significant cost savings from generating solar power on-site can dramatically reduce energy costs, allowing them to be allocated to life-saving healthcare services.
Developed for Longevity
Sustainability
We build with longevity in mind, understanding that the design of a building affects care delivery, maintenance, and long-term costs. We continuously focus on optimizing the efficiency of our facilities to lower operating costs by using materials, technology, and equipment that are affordable, repairable, and long-lasting.
Our Story
In 2009, David Walton, a medical doctor working with Partners In Health called Jim Ansara, founder and former CEO of Shawmut Design and Construction, for assistance in building a 100-bed community hospital in central Haiti. In the midst of their burgeoning partnership, the 2010 earthquake struck Haiti. In response to the resulting devastation, particularly to hospitals and clinics, the 100-bed community hospital evolved into a 320-bed university teaching hospital. For the next three years, Jim and David designed, oversaw construction, and operationalized Hôpital Universitaire de Mirebalais. From the hospital's success came the concept for BHI – an organization that would address the critical need for design and construction expertise to build high-quality, low-cost infrastructure in resource-constrained settings. BHI was formally founded in 2014 and to date has completed over 150 infrastructure projects in the Caribbean, Latin America, and Africa.
A Message from Dr. Paul Farmer. Co-Founder, Partners in Health.
”BHI is attacking the poverty of mean aspirations - acceptance of decaying and poorly built infrastructure as inevitable and tolerable - by designing, building, and maintaining high-quality hospitals, clinics, and labs in settings from Haiti to Rwanda”
Dr. Paul Farmer
Co-founder, Partners in Health