News

Medical Aid Films call for global action to address adolescent mental health – Report

This World Mental Health Day 2023, our new Adolescent Mental Health report calls for global action to address adolescent mental health in low and middle-income countries. The report highlights high levels of undiagnosed and untreated mental health conditions and a lack of access to appropriate care – there is urgent need to provide timely detection and treatment in…

More


Changing Lives through Film: An Innovative Approach to Adolescent Health in Zambia

I’m Michelle Kanene, the Project Coordinator for the SCREEN project in Zambia. Together  with our partners the Zambian Ministry of Health, Vitol Foundation and SAfAIDS Zambia, we’ve embarked on a fascinating three-year journey to develop SCREEN, using health education films to create real social change. Our project has seen the development of five films on…

More


Empowering Nomadic Birth Attendants: Reducing Maternal Mortality through Film-Based Training

The Nomad Foundation is a small non-for-profit of committed humanitarians and healthcare educators attempting to reduce maternal mortality among Tuareg and Wodaabe people. For the last six years, they have been using our films to train birth attendants from two nomadic tribes in Northern Niger.   Rebecca Jones is a doctor in obstetrics and gynaecology and…

More


Bridging the Gap in Global Healthcare – My Journey as an Intern and a Volunteer

Bethlehem is a dedicated GP from Ethiopia and digital communications volunteer at Medical Aid Films who is contributing to narrowing the health gap worldwide. As we celebrate International Health Day, she shares her inspiring journey, which began during her internship at one of Ethiopia’s top hospitals in 2021, and highlights how patient stories have inspired…

More


In my recent trip to Kenya, I saw how educational films can help improve maternal nutrition

Helen Coombe, Head of Evaluation and Research. Good nutrition is core to the well-being of women and children. It underpins longer-term child development and broader health outcomes both during pregnancy and early infancy. In my recent trip to Kenya, I met with a range of organisations to explore how educational films can help parents learn…

More


“I am keen to change the ways that midwives are treated and restore dignity to our profession”

90% of the nursing and midwifery workforce are women, according to medical journal Lancet. To celebrate International Women’s Day, we asked midwife volunteer Anaghim Ghnimi to share her story and her dreams for the future.  My name is Anaghim Ghnimi and I am a full-time medical representative and a part-time volunteer midwife from Tunisia. Growing…

More


Narrowing the Health Gap

Did you know that nearly half the planet cannot reach any healthcare service within one hour by foot? That’s a whopping 3.16 billion people forced to travel long distances to access adequate healthcare! (Nature, 2022). Since 2007, Medical Aid Films has been part of the solution. We work with our partners to produce high quality…

More


Breaking the Stigma Around Childhood Cancer

More than 400,000 children and adolescents are affected by cancer every year worldwide, yet childhood cancer still remains an unknown condition in many households. This International Childhood Cancer Day, we’re raising awareness of the importance of early diagnosis and effective treatment so that every child and adolescent can have the best chance in life. Childhood…

More


Stronger-SAFE: sharing project successes to reduce the effects of trachoma in Ethiopia

We’re delighted to share today two Stronger-SAFE films to reduce trachoma and blindness in Ethiopia.   The films show the experiences of people involved in, and benefits of, the Stronger-SAFE trachoma trial, a five-year project run by an interdisciplinary team from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Ethiopian Ministry of Health, The Fred Hollows…

More


Send us your best offers for our second hand filming equipment

As we enter the holiday season, we would like to give you the opportunity to become the proud owner of some of our fabulous second hand camera equipment! Though the equipment has had some wear from documenting our incredible work over the years, it is still in great condition and ready for a new owner…

More


Educational films increased maternal and newborn health knowledge in remote regions in Nepal, research finds

New research published on Women’s Health and conducted by One Heart Worldwide and Medical Aid Films shows that socio-culturally adapted educational films increased maternal and newborn health knowledge in pregnant women and female community health volunteers in Nepal’s Khotang district.   For the study, researchers interviewed 101 pregnant women and 39 Female Community Health Volunteers from…

More


A New Raising Voices and Medical Aid Films Collaboration: Films Addressing Positive Discipline Techniques for Parents

Ugandan non-profit Raising Voices and Medical Aid Films launched Positive Discipline, a film that encourages parents to correct poor behaviour in a way that’s safe for children and enhances their development. Through its story-driven narrative, this short impactful film models the use of positive discipline techniques to promote respect and encouragement of children in a…

More

Teacher in Ugandan school

Making a Difference – Medical Aid Films wins award for outstanding research  

Medical Aid Films has won the ESOMAR Foundation’s Making a Difference Award, which recognises charities using outstanding research to make a positive difference in society.   The award recognises how research findings have been used to develop new digital health content for an adolescent health screening project, and to influence local practice in a rural area…

More


Choosing Contraception – Young Zambians Decide For Themselves

Today, 1st of September, Medical Aid Films launches “Choosing Contraception”, an educational film where young Zambians encourage their peers to make informed decisions about their sexual and reproductive health.  The film is the first of a series created in partnership with the Ministry of Health in Zambia and non-profit SAfAIDS,  and is a part of our…

More

Young Zambian couple

“Medical Aid Films was like a little plant full of promise. Now it’s a big tree in good heath”

Catherine McCarthy, CEO at Medical Aid Films The last few weeks have seen some significant changes at Medical Aid Films! We have been incredibly lucky to have Mickey De Lathauwer on our Board of Trustees since the organisation started nearly 15 years ago, and, for the last few years, he has been our Board Chair. Mickey has provided us with inspiring…

More


Vaccines for all: new collaboration aims to increase vaccine uptake worldwide

Medical Aid Films is proud to have joined forces with CORE group to launch two new projects that promote higher levels of vaccination worldwide. Vaccines mean life It’s estimated that 12.4 million children around the world haven’t received any routine vaccines. These children, often referred to as “zero-dose”, have a higher risk of dying of…

More


Volunteer placements support overseas communities and improve the NHS, says the Tropical Health & Education Trust

Our latest film follows the story of Dr. Helen Newsom, a paediatric registrar at Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, and her experiences volunteering at Zambia’s Matero Hospital.  This week (4 – 8 April) is World Health Worker Week, an opportunity for organisations around the world to celebrate and draw attention to the needs of health…

More

Dr. Helen Newsom, paediatric registrar at Sheffield Children's NHS Foundation Trust

Medical Aid Films launch multilingual films to encourage COVID-19 vaccine uptake in the UK

Medical Aid Films have produced new films and animations in English, Bengali and Arabic to support doctors to encourage COVID-19 vaccine uptake in the UK. The films focus on the efficacy of the vaccine and encourage underserved communities to speak to their local NHS services if they have any concerns. Currently only 64.8% of the…

More


Colouring the Narrative: raising awareness of colourism in India through film

Today we are releasing three new animations to raise awareness of colourism and the skin-lightening industry in India. Colourism is the concept that lighter skin is more desirable and that having lighter skin will lead to more success. The films bring attention to the serious public health problem of colourism and the skin-lightening industry in…

More

Birma story on colourism

New animation aiding Cameroon caregivers to prevent infection in hospitals

A new animation produced by Medical Aid Films will be part of infection prevention and control measures to help orientate caregivers in Cameroonian hospitals. In most hospitals in Cameroon, personal care such as feeding and cleaning of some patients is done by caregivers, often family or loved ones. Without effective training and support, caregivers may…

More


The Big Give Christmas Challenge 2021 is here!

The year’s biggest match-funding event is here from Tuesday 30th November to Tuesday 7th December – and your donation will make a huge difference. Our Big Give Christmas Challenge aims to raise money to help us translate, adapt and digitally disseminate our health content to more people. We want to increase access to our films…

More


Improving health literacy through film

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March 2020, I had no problems understanding the information about the disease on television, in the news, and on the internet. I took this for granted – everything was produced in English, my native language. I could easily understand the instructions of washing my hands for 20 seconds, wearing…

More


Sheida Kiran: Global Short Docs Forum

In August 2021, Medical Aid Films Production Coordinator Sheida Kiran spent a month living with tea picking women on the Black Sea Coast in Turkey to film her master’s final project. Now she is embarking on intensive programme which will prepare her to pitch her film to a panel of Commissioning Editors, thanks to One…

More


Annual Review film 2020

While the world paused, we pressed play. Watch our Annual Review film to see what we achieved in 2020.

More


SCREEN: Working with audiences

Steven Zarnfaller, our UK Project Manager, talks about the people whose stories make SCREEN what it is.

More


SCREEN: Assessing Our Work

Helen Coombe, our Head of Monitoring and Evaluation, outlines the five key stages in our SCREEN evaluation plan.

More


Introduction to SCREEN

Our SCREEN Project Manager, Steven Zarnfaller, introduces the project and what we aim to achieve with it over the coming months.

More


A Brighter Future

Today on World Childrens Day, we launch “A Brighter Future” series: four animated films, made in partnership with Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, which will support children at centres run by the Foundation’s partners and help them make positive steps towards the future.

More


COVID-19 UK Community films: social media toolkit

Medical Aid Films, supported by the British Medical Association, has created a COVID-19 animation providing valuable information for communities in the UK.

More


Serenje Film Screening Research Project – Exploring the gender-specific impact of educational film on maternal and child health in rural Zambia.

Medical Aid Films is pleased to present our latest research paper ‘Exploring the gender-specific impact of educational films on maternal and child health knowledge and behavior: a qualitative study in Serenje district, Zambia’, recently published in the International Quarterly of Community Health Education (IQCHE).

More


Volunteering with MAF: Caroline Heuschen

Caroline Heuschen is a medical doctor, training in psychiatry, and has been volunteering with Medical Aid Films since October 2019. In this short read she runs through her experiences of volunteering for us and what she has learned so far.

More


July Staff Spotlight: Meet Ashley Yonga

The Staff Spotlight is a new monthly feature for you to get to know the incredible people behind Medical Aid Films. This month, meet our Volunter Research Assistant; Ashley Yonga.

More


Medical Aid Films & VSO host Men’s Engagement event in House of Commons

To mark International Women’s Day 2020, Medical Aid Films was delighted to collaborate with VSO (Voluntary Service Overseas) in March to host an event in the House of Common exploring men’s engagement in maternal and child health.

More

Reverend George Buannie with VSO & MAF

Clean your Hands – Hand Washing training

Washing your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds is one of the first lines of defence against Coronavirus infection. Medical Aid Films has two educational films available in multiple languages on hand-washing best practice for both communities and health workers.

More


VR technologies and the potential of immersive storytelling for change

Medical Aid Films explores the latest in virtual and augmented reality…

More

Medical Aid Films at immersive storytelling workshop

Medical Aid Films announced as finalist for two upcoming industry awards

We’re in the running for best “Production Company” and “Small NGO Award” – find out more…

More

SIMA awards image

How much do you know about Zika?

Medical Aid Films has been proud to work in partnership with London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) to produce an interactive quiz and short film, Hope After Zika.

More

Zika Quiz Featured Image

Medical Aid Films joins Christmas Challenge aiming to double supporters’ gifts

We’re gearing up to double supporters’ Christmas donations by taking part in the UK’s biggest match funding campaign, The Big Give’s Christmas Challenge 2019.

More

Big Give Christmas Campaign

New film tells the story of the journey from research to practice for self-injectable contraception in Malawi.

We are thrilled to announce that “The Power of Self-injectable Contraception” is now available for free download.

More


Film series helps babies with respiratory problems breathe

Set of 13 training films available for streaming and download made by our partner Picturing Health – created to train teams looking after premature babies with severe respiratory distress.

More


TV Dr Michael Mosley interviewed by Patron Anne Morrison at Chelsea Physic Garden event

London’s historic garden was the setting for TV Dr Michael Mosley’s evening talk on “Food, Medicine & Media” with film as a potentially powerful tool in global health education.

More

Dr Michael Mosley & Anne Morrison

New Partnership extends our library of content to include HIV paediatric case study films

A new partnership with Picturing Health is providing a suite of films for use in HIV education. 13 films and accompanying notes are available for free download.

More

HIV Paediatric Case Study Training Films

Founder Professor Eric Jauniaux reflects on Medical Aid Films’ development

Accepting the “Most Enterprising Charity” Award on behalf of Medical Aid Films Founder Eric Jauniaux writes about the charity’s beginnings.

More

Eric Jaunaiux Founder

‘Keji Counts’ screens at the Women Deliver Film Festival 2019

Keji Counts is being shown at the Women Deliver Conference in Vancouver this year.

More

'Keji Counts' showing at WD2019

Medical Aid Films wins prestigious “Most Enterprising Charity” Award

We’ve won the Most Enterprising category at The Asian Voice Charity Awards powered by Charity Clarity.

More

Catherine McCarthy & Nayan Patel

Improving community health messaging: Acholi films

Part of a project improving the maternal, newborn and child health in Uganda our 8 films translated into Acholi are now available for free download.

More


Acholi Films assist mother to identify complications in pregnancy

Medical Aid Films translation of “Understanding Warning Signs in Pregnancy” into Acholi assists Ugandan mother to identify complications in her own pregnancy.

More

Miremba, mother, Uganda watched "Understanding Warning Signs in Pregnancy"

World Malaria Day – 25th April 2019

Our films are empowering communities to address their own malaria prevention and care.

More

Econet Malaria Films

Translating knowledge, transforming health

Partnership with Bethel Computers for Education delivers a suite of four films translated for communities in Haiti.

More

Children watch Bethel Computers for Education "Internet in a Box"

Inspirational Women Inspiring Change – #IWD2019

Celebrating the extraordinary women working to improve global health through educational films.

More

Somaliland Midwifery lead

Hope Walks: Freedom from Clubfoot

Pre-production starts on new educational films in partnership with Hope Walks to help with training, awareness raising & the early detection of clubfoot.

More

Baby J is treated by physiotherapist at clubfoot clinic, Lusaka, Zambia.

The Network of Safety – Saving the Lives of Mothers and Newborns in Rural Nepal

Our partnership with One Heart World-Wide has produced a suite of educational films aiming to reduce the risk of maternal and neonatal mortality in Nepal.

More

Nepalese woman smiles with her baby

Our 2018 Showreel

Watch our 2018 showreel showing how we’ve been using innovative media to transform global health and wellbeing over the last year.

More

Showreel 2018 image

Workshop: Reaching Men Through Health Films

Medical Aid Films is running a workshop for maternal and child health professionals/health promotion professionals in Lusaka, Zambia.

More

Friday 23rd November, Lusaka. A half-day workshop on Men's Engagement Interventions for maternal and child health professionals.

Watch Badra’s story – training midwives using film

With over 30 films in Somali, the work of Medical Aid Films supports the training, continued development and e-learning of nurses and midwives. Badra is one of them.

More

Studying midwifery at the University of Hargeisa

Why Sophie Supports our BBC Radio 4 Appeal

When recording our appeal earlier this month, Sophie Ellis-Bextor told us why she supports Medical Aid Films.

More

Sophie Ellis-Bextor outside of BBC Broadcasting House for Medical Aid Films

Sophie Ellis-Bextor lends her voice to Medical Aid Films’ BBC Appeal.

Singer-songwriter Sophie Ellis-Bextor joined us this week at BBC Broadcasting House to record the script for our upcoming appeal.

More

Sophie Ellis Bextor in BBC studio for Medical Aid Films Radio 4 appeal

Our BBC Radio 4 Appeal – taking to the airwaves

Listen up! BBC Radio 4 Appeal to feature Medical Aid Films in October.

More

Four stills of women and children from the work of Medical Aid Films

Giving Tuesday – Yoga in the Fields

What is Giving Tuesday? Tuesday 28th of November, following Black Friday, has been coined as ‘Giving Tuesday’ by the media, large corporates and charities. Everyone is encouraged to partake in charitable activities and fundraise for worthy causes. This is the first year we will be celebrating Giving Tuesday and are running a fundraiser in our local area so would…

More


New animations from our participatory film workshop, part of the ground-breaking Girls’ Education South Sudan Programme

Our latest films are part of a ground-breaking education programme in South Sudan, where girls’ lives are being transformed by access to education, in a country where on-going conflict continues to have a devastating effect on schooling and the education sector. Working with Mott MacDonald’s UK Aid funded programme, Girls’ Education South Sudan (GESS), Medical…

More


Watch our first 360/VR film!

360/VR films are providing us with new and immersive experiences, changing the way we see the world. We are excited to share our first 360/VR film. Shot in rural Zambia, the film documents our work with the Ministry of Health running community health screenings over the past two years. For the first time ever, we are able to take…

More


10th Anniversary celebrations at BAFTA 195 and brand new Showreel

On Monday 11th September we celebrated our 10th Anniversary at the incredible BAFTA 195 Piccadilly venue. The night saw 140 guests join us to fill the fabulous David Lean room, celebrating 10 years of saving lives through film. We were delighted to welcome renowned film director and long-term Patron Gurinder Chadha OBE, well-known actors Helen George and…

More


A new film empowering girls and women with knowledge about menstruation

Having a period is a natural process and part of normal life for girls and women. However for many girls’ their journey into adolescence can be challenging and they may face significant pressures and stigma. Filmed in Kibera, Kenya, our new film provides an overview of menstruation and the processes that occur during puberty. The…

More


New film celebrating the vital role of midwives globally

International Day of the Midwife celebrates the vital role midwives play in supporting women around the world through their pregnancy and childbirth. In many parts of the world however, there is an increased medicalisation of pregnancy and childbirth, with some women experiencing unnecessary treatments and procedures that can have negative effects on both the mother…

More


Transforming malaria health education using mobile animation in Zimbabwe

Half the population of Zimbabwe live in areas with a high risk of malaria transmission. In response to the need for improved awareness about the disease, we have been working with Econet Wireless on an innovative project to reach health workers and communities with vital information – on their mobile phones. With over 9 million subscribers,…

More


Girls’ Education South Sudan – Inspire. Educate. Transform.

Our latest film showcases a ground-breaking education programme in South Sudan, where girls’ lives are being transformed by access to education, in a country where ongoing conflict continues to have a devastating effect on schooling and the education sector. South Sudan is one of the toughest places on earth to be a girl in 2017. Famine has…

More


A new film about safety in fistula surgery

Obstetric fistula is one of the most devastating and serious injuries that can occur during childbirth. It affects between 50,000 and 100,000 women each year, mainly in low-income countries, and it is estimated that more than 2 million women live with untreated fistula in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa alone. Women who experience obstetric fistula not…

More


We’re celebrating 10 years of transforming lives through film

2017 is a very special year for us at Medical Aid Films as we celebrate our 10th anniversary. During the year we will be reflecting on what we have achieved, sharing stories of our work and its impact around the world, and revealing some exciting plans for the future. But first, we would like to…

More


Watch our 2016 show reel

We are so excited to share our brand new show reel showcasing some of our work in 2016. We have some very exciting plans for next year (our 10th Anniversary) which we cannot wait to share with you all in early 2017. Please help us continue to transform more lives through the power of film,…

More


A new film about our collaboration with The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists

Women’s access to family planning and safe abortion care services is a real and current global health problem. 225 million women who want to delay or prevent pregnancy have no access to family planning globally and there are 22 million unsafe abortions each year. The majority of these women live in under-resourced countries and more…

More


Read our Annual Review 2015 to see how we’re transforming lives through film

Medical Aid Films is a unique organisation bringing together health and medical expertise with creative film makers, in response to the global crisis in women’s and child health.

More


Somaliland – SLNMA

Helping to rebuild the health system in Somaliland The Somaliland Nursing and Midwifery Association, is helping to change the health care system in Somaliland. This autonomous region in Somalia has among the highest rates of maternal and child mortality in the world. The health infrastructure was destroyed by civil war, with doctors and nurses having…

More


In the recording studio with Her Excellency Toyin Saraki!

We were thrilled to be recording today with Her Excellency Toyin Saraki, for our new film A Midwife Like Me – which we are producing in collaboration with the International Confederation of Midwives. This film will celebrate the role of midwives around the world and the importance of normal birth.  Midwives play such an invaluable role in…

More


Films in new languages for health worker training in Nigeria

We are delighted to launch a suite of 11 maternal and child health films in two new languages – Yoruba and Hausa – to support the development an innovative health worker training programme in Nigeria. This programme uses a tablet-based curriculum, developed with InStrat Global Health Solutions, Digital Campus, mPowering Frontline Health Workers and Ondo…

More


New films about diabetes in pregnancy

Diabetes is considered to be the biggest global health crisis faced today.  Around 422 million adults live with the condition, resulting in 1.5 million deaths per year, and these numbers are expected to double in the next 20 years. But one type of diabetes that often goes unrecognized is gestational diabetes, which develops in pregnancy and…

More


A new partnership to transform health worker training in Nigeria

Medical Aid Films, in partnership with InStrat Global Health Solutions, Digital Campus and mPowering Frontline Health Workers, are working with Ondo State Primary Health Care Development Board, to launch a new tablet-based maternal and child health training curriculum for nurses, midwives, and community health workers in Ondo State, Nigeria. The 12-week pilot programme supports in-service…

More


What is an obstructed labour? Watch our training film for midwives

Obstructed labour is one of the most common causes of death during childbirth in developing countries. Labour is considered obstructed when the baby cannot descend through the pelvis, despite strong uterine contractions, which leads to wide-ranging and dangerous complications for both the mother and newborn. Medical Aid Films is delighted to launch Obstructed Labour: An…

More


Watch how film is being used to help measure warning signs in pregnancy

Congratulations to researchers from King’s College London, whose Microlife Vital Signs Alert (VSA) device has been nominated as one of 30 ‘high-impact innovations to save lives’ in Reimagining Global Health, the inaugural report of the Innovation Countdown 2030 initiative. The Microlife VSA is the world’s first medical device to detect shock and high blood pressure…

More


New films in Kinyarwanda

We are excited to launch two films in Kinyarwanda this week. Is your child sick? (covering symptoms of malaria, diarrhoea and pneumonia in children) and What pregnant women need to eat (covering nutrition in pregnancy to support the health of mother and baby) are the first of our films to be dubbed in this language,…

More


How can film transform lives? Watch our showreel

Watch now for a glimpse of some of the films we’ve produced in the last year. Well, what a year it’s been! We’ve produced 30 new films this year – films about respectful maternity care, puberty, and fistula nursing care – and in new languages such as Bemba, Luganda and Kinyarwanda. They’ve been watched over a million…

More


Gurinder Chadha on Radio 4

Where can you hear The Clash and Bally Sagoo uttered in the same sentence? On Desert Island Discs of course, where Gurinder Chadha – writer, film director and Patron of Medical Aid Films – was discussing her life and musical influences this morning. Click here to hear Gurinder talking about her background and growing up…

More


Caring for women with fistula. Watch our training film for nurses

Fistula is a devastating condition caused by childbirth, affecting an estimated 1 million women worldwide – it causes constant leaking of urine and faeces, which leads to shame and social stigma, and other health complications. Women with fistula are often outcast from their families and communities, and live in desperate isolation suffering from the physical…

More