Rural Health Care Initiative

What Rural Health Care Initiative does

Rural Health Care Initiative (RHCI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, that delivers maternal and child health services in rural Sierra Leone, primarily in the Tikonko Chiefdom of Bo District. Founded in 2011 (with field operations beginning in 2015) by Alice Karpeh, the organization runs four core programs: a Maternity Waiting Home model (Mbao-mi Mothers' Home) that houses up to 24 near-term pregnant women near skilled delivery care; weekly motorbike outreach clinics serving remote villages; a Children's Health Program including the Positive Deviance Hearth malnutrition rehabilitation model; and a Sustainable Food & Agriculture initiative in partnership with Njala University. RHCI also provides 24/7 emergency transportation for pregnant women and critically ill children to Bo district hospitals and operates a second Birth Waiting Home under development in Gondama in partnership with the local Community Health Center.

The operating model combines community-based healthcare delivery with low-technology infrastructure: motorbikes, Toyota Hilux and Land Cruiser vehicles, solar power systems, e-readers loaded with the Merck Manual for clinical reference, and a network of 26+ trained Community Health Workers. Programs are staffed by a small in-country team led by a Program Director (MD/MPH), a Head Nurse, a Senior Midwife, an In-Country Director, a Finance and Technical Director, and a Garden Manager, with oversight from a US-based Executive Director, Communications Coordinator, and volunteer Board of Directors. RHCI has a 4-star Charity Navigator rating and a GuideStar Gold Seal of Transparency.

RHCI is funded entirely through donations and grants from individuals, family foundations, and US government sources, with no fees charged to patients. Documented donors include the U.S. Embassy in Sierra Leone, the Berglund Family Foundation, the Petrie Hanson Family, Diamond Lake Plastics, the Greg and Peg Palen Family via the Catholic Community Fund, Christ the King Lutheran Church, the Improving Chances Foundation, the Catholic Family Foundation, the Concannon Family Foundation, the Petrie Family Trust, Books for Africa, Global Health Ministries, and Matter NGO. Revenue is raised through annual events (Taste of Africa dinner, Bowling Night, Expanding Our Roots Dinner) and supplemented with in-kind equipment donations. The organization reported 23,612 touchpoints in 2023 and zero maternal deaths across 350+ Birth Waiting Home admissions.

Name

Rural Health Care Initiative

Legal name

Rural Health Care Initiative

Website

https://rhcimnsl.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Rural Health Care Initiative is a Minneapolis-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit operating maternal and child health programs in rural Sierra Leone, including a Birth Waiting Home, motorbike outreach clinics, malnutrition treatment, and sustainable agriculture for underserved communities in the Tikonko Chiefdom and Gondama area.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Rural Maternal and Child Healthcare Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Child and Youth Services (62411)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Home Health Care Services (8082)

akta.pro primary industry

Maternal, Newborn, Child & Adolescent Health (MNCAH) NGOs (HLAJAKAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Maternal, Child & Family Health Organizations (BPAGACAF), Maternal, Child & Family Health Program Funding (HLAJALAG), Maternal, Child & Family Health Departments (HLAJAAAK)

Keywords

• Rural maternal health
• Child health programs
• Birth waiting home
• Community health workers
• Childhood malnutrition treatment

Headquarters

HQ city

Minneapolis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grants: RHCI operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization funded entirely through donations from individuals, foundations, and government grants. Major funding sources include US Embassy grants, foundation grants (Berglund Family Foundation, Petrie Hanson Family, Diamond Lake Plastics), and individual donors.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Rural Health Care Initiative delivers free maternal and child healthcare services to women and children in rural Sierra Leone through a network of Birth Waiting Home facilities (Mbao-mi Mothers' Home and a second facility in Gondama), weekly motorbike outreach clinics that reach remote villages, 24/7 emergency transportation for pregnant women and critically ill children, and a childhood malnutrition rehabilitation program. All programs are provided at no cost to patients and are funded entirely through charitable donations and grants from individuals, foundations, and government sources.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mbao-mi Mothers' Home (Maternity Waiting Home) A Birth Waiting Home facility in Tikonko, Sierra Leone that provides lodging, medical monitoring, educational classes, sewing programs, and 24/7 security and transportation for up to 24 pregnant women from remote villages near term, before they deliver at the Tikonko Community Health Center. Free to beneficiaries.
• Gondama Motorbike Outreach Clinic Weekly motorbike mobile health clinic serving villages in the Gondama catchment area (approximately 12 miles from Tikonko Town) with antenatal care, childhood immunizations, malaria treatment, family planning consultations, and malnutrition screening, in partnership with the Gondama Community Health Center. Free to patients.
• Positive Deviance Hearth Childhood Malnutrition Program A community-based childhood malnutrition rehabilitation program using Positive Deviance/Hearth methodology, MUAC screening, and caregiver education to reduce stunting and treat malnutrition among children under five in the Tikonko Chiefdom.
• Sustainable Food & Agriculture Program Agricultural extension and food security program operated in partnership with the Njala University Agriculture Program, supporting farmers in RHCI-served villages with technical expertise and improved farming practices. RHCI's Agriculture Expert Georgiana Allie is a Junior Faculty Member at Njala University.
• Emergency Transportation Service 24/7 emergency transportation service using RHCI-owned Toyota Hilux and Land Cruiser vehicles to transport pregnant women to the Tikonko Community Health Center and critically ill children to Bo Children's Hospital and Mercy Hospital. Free to patients.
• Gondama Birth Waiting Home A second Birth Waiting Home being developed in the Gondama area through the rehabilitation of a former Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) facility, operated in partnership with the Gondama Community Health Center using the Mbao-mi Mothers' Home operational model. Free to pregnant women.
• Community Health Worker Training Program Capacity-building program delivered in partnership with MOMS to train Community Health Workers (CHWs) in maternal and child health, supporting 26 CHWs in Kassama and Sembehun and additional CHWs in the Gondama catchment area.

Quantifiable outcome

• Sierra Leone maternal mortality reduced by 74% since 2000 (from 1,680 to 440 per 100,000 live births)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• H2O for LifeminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2025Partnership to bring vital WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) project to Sami Tabema school, including new well, toilets, and handwashing stations.
• Direct ReliefminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 June 2023Donated midwife kits with supplies for 400 deliveries to RHCI in Sierra Leone. Kits arrived in Tikonko via shipping in June 2023.
• University of North Carolina Gillings School of Global Public HealthminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 August 2022Humanitarian Health Initiative collaboration with UNC School of Public Health for program development and research.
• Solar Kits for ChangeminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 June 2021Donated solar electric bicycle and additional solar lights for health centers in distant villages.
• Njala UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Partnership with Njala University Agriculture Program. University professors and students visited RHCI-supported villages to meet with farmers and provide agricultural expertise. RHCI's Agriculture Expert Georgiana Allie is a Junior Faculty Member at Njala University.
• Books for AfricaminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2020Donated five e-readers with Merck Manual loaded, distributed to healthcare staff at Tikonko Health Center.
• Global Health MinistriesminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2020Donated midwife equipment and medical supplies for RHCI programs.
• Matter NGOminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2020Donated medical supplies shipped to Sierra Leone.
• Tikonko Community Health CentercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2019Primary government health partner for delivery services. RHCI transports pregnant women to CHC for deliveries and works with CHC staff for motorbike clinics and immunizations campaigns.
• Gondama Community Health CentercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2019Government health center RHCI partners with for expanded services in Gondama area, including motorbike clinic and Birth Waiting Home operations.
• Midwives on Missions of Service (MOMS)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 February 2019Partnership for training Community Health Workers in maternal and child health. MOMS conducted 3.5-week trainings in Kassama and Sembehun (February-March 2019, training 26 CHWs) and in Gondama (October 2020, training 20+ CHWs). MOMS mission overlaps with RHCI's to improve maternal and child health through education and service.
• Bo Children's Hospital and Mercy HospitalcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019District hospitals providing advanced care. RHCI transports critically ill children and provides funding for hospital stays. Mercy Hospital provides OB ultrasound services monthly.
• OneVillage PartnersminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 March 2018Minnesota-based nonprofit focused on Sierra Leone. Founder Jeff Hall gave keynote at RHCI's Expanding Our Roots event. Both organizations work to improve quality of life in Sierra Leone.
• World Hope InternationalminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 January 2018Facilitated Helping Babies Breathe and Essential Care for Every Baby training at the Birth Waiting Home in January 2018, training 53 healthcare staff in newborn resuscitation and care.
• National Organization of Sierra Leoneans in North America (NOSLINA)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2018Major donation including generator, freezer, two refrigerators, and water pump for Mbao-mi Mothers' Home, orchestrated by President Suna Nallo.
• Garden Club of PrincetonminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2016Donated and installed WeShareSolar suitcase solar power system for the Mbao-mi Mothers' Home, providing lighting for kitchen, security area, and phone/flashlight charging. Installed January 2018.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Partners in Health: Global nonprofit delivering maternal, child, and primary healthcare in resource-poor settings alongside government health systems. Highly comparable to RHCI's model of partnering with local CHCs and CHWs in Sierra Leone.
• Last Mile Health: Specializes in training and deploying Community Health Workers to deliver primary care in remote African communities. Directly analogous to RHCI's MOMS-trained CHW network and motorbike outreach clinics.
• AMREF Health Africa: Africa's largest health NGO, training health workers and running community health programs across the continent. Comparable maternal/child health focus and CHW capacity-building model.
• OneVillage Partners: Minnesota-based nonprofit operating in Sierra Leone on rural community development and livelihoods. Operates in the same donor ecosystem and Sierra Leone geography as RHCI.
• World Hope International: Already an RHCI training partner, this organization delivers health, WASH, and economic programs in Sierra Leone and similar low-resource settings. Closely overlapping mission and beneficiary base.
• Midwives on Missions of Service (MOMS): Strategic RHCI partner that delivers 3.5-week CHW training in maternal/child health in Sierra Leone. Closely aligned mission and overlapping program model.

Broad incumbents

• BRAC: One of the world's largest development NGOs operating integrated health, education, and livelihoods programs across Africa and Asia. Operates at significantly greater scale than RHCI but with overlapping rural health focus.
• Doctors Without Borders / MSF: Previously operated the abandoned Gondama Birth Waiting Home that RHCI is rehabilitating. Large global humanitarian organization with maternal/child health programming across Sub-Saharan Africa.

Others

• Direct Relief: Donated 400-delivery midwife kits to RHCI. Major medical aid organization supporting maternal/child health facilities globally; functions as supply-side enabler rather than direct operator.
• Global Health Ministries: Donated midwife equipment and medical supplies to RHCI. Minnesota-rooted nonprofit supporting hospital and clinic capacity in resource-limited settings — closely tied to RHCI's geography and donor base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/RuralHealthCareInitiative
• Instagraminstagram.com/rhcimnsl
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rural-health-care-initiative-sierra-leone

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Rural Health Care Initiative