MedShare InternationalSharing can make a world of difference

Our Mission

MedShare International is dedicated to bridging the gap between surplus and need to improve healthcare and the environment in the United States and abroad.

MedShare International Is the Bridge

• United States hospitals discard over 5,000 tons of waste every day.*

• Much of the surplus is opened, but unused medical supplies.

• Most times, this surplus is put into landfills or incinerated.

• Lack of supplies and equipment is a major global health problem.

• MedShare International is the bridge between surplus & need.

*According to Health Care Without Harm

Our Purpose

MedShare International acts as a recycling and distribution center for surplus medical supplies and equipment, redistributing them to healthcare facilities in economically developing countries that have little or no medical resources.

Our Process:

Collection

MedShare collects a weekly average of almost 20,000 pounds of useable surplus medical supplies from both local and national partner hospitals, manufacturers and distributors.

Our Process:

Preparation

MedShare staff and volunteers then evaluate, sort, label, inventory and prepare these materials for shipment.

Our Results

• Since its inception in 1998, MedShare has donated over $50 million worth of medical supplies and equipment to hospitals and clinics in over 70 countries around the world.

•In 2007, MedShare shipped a record 78 forty-foot containers and supported 173 medical teams traveling to do work abroad.

Our Community

• MedShare International relies on the generosity of both corporate and private donors who give their time, product donations and money to ensure that MedShare can continue to operate.

• Volunteers are at the heart of MedShare’s mission. An average of almost 500 volunteers per month sort, pack and process the donated medical supplies.

• MedShare’s beneficiaries are underserved healthcare institutions throughout the world.

The most important piece of equipment we received from MedShare was a neonatal resuscitation table. We had a very unfortunate accident prior to its arrival. A newborn lost its finger after a light bulb fell on [the finger]. We had been using the light bulb to warm the baby because we had no medically designed warming lamp.

-- Recipient from South America

Feedback From MedShare Recipients

Over the years, the containers from MedShare have supplied us with many valuable items which we use in our care of the poor here in Nairobi. Thanks to the help from MedShare, we are able to provide our low-income patients with a standard of care that would not otherwise be possible.

-- Rev. Dr. Bill Fryda St. Mary’s Mission Hospital, Kenya

Comments from MedShare’s Partners

One needs to just look at the increasing collections and corresponding shipments to know that support for MedShare is growing and the need for medical products is great. Emory Healthcare hospitals and clinics are proud to be a part of bringing much needed equipment and supplies to healthcare providers around the world.

-- John T. Fox, President and CEO of Emory Healthcare

It was a pleasure to do what I could to help a very worthwhile cause. Believe me, I gained more from my time spent with MedShare than I could ever give. My wife is from the Philippines and I saw that country on your map. I know from first hand experience what the needs are in third world countries. I hope to work with your organization again.

-- Bruce, CIBA Vision Volunteer

Unloading Supplies in Niger

Donation of Beds

Biomedical Equipment

Biomedical Needs Assessment

Medical Team Trip

“MedShare is a truly win-win solution. U.S. hospitals have an environmentally conscious alternative to throwing away their medical supplies, and hospitals and clinics in the developing world can use those materials to help provide the medical assistance that is so urgently needed.”

William Foege, M.D.Senior Medical Advisor to the Bill & Melinda

Gates Foundation's Global Health Program