Karla Schefter was an OT head nurse at the municipal hospital in Dortmund for 24 years before starting to work in Afghanistan. She’s been working at and for the Chak-e-Wardak Hospital for 26 years now.
Schefter was awarded the Bundesverdienstkreuz 1.Klasse and the Malalai medal in Afghanistan for her work (the highest German honour, and the highest honour for a woman in Afghanistan).
The Chak-e-Wardak Hospital Project was founded in 1989 with financial support from the EU. In 1992 the EU funding was withdrawn and the hospital nearly closed. Schefter, who was involved in the project right from the start, took over and became head of the hospital. She has managed to keep the hospital open and running for 26 years now – despite considerable financial difficulties and the deteriorating political situation. Apart from her, all members of staff are Afghanis.
Donations to the hospital have gone way down since Germany took in so many refugees and people started donating to the various organizations assisting them. Furthermore, Schefter says, Afghanistan is now often regarded as a hopeless case where the situation only gets worse. You could equally argue that the current situation makes this hospital all the more important. To me the hospital is proof of what incredible feats people are capable of if they put their mind to it. If you would like to make a contribution for the Chak-e-Wardak Hospital Project, please donate to
C.P.H.A. e.V.
IBAN: DE70 4405 0199 0181 0000 90
BIC: DORTDE33 Sparkasse Dortmund