How Medical Logistics Saves Lives in Indonesia’s Remote Villages
This new photo of the day shows Erwin preparing life-saving medicines. It’s neither spectacular nor noisy. It’s the silent preparation that enables everything possible. In this photo, you see Erwin (or just his hands), our field coordinator for the Primary Medical Care program, sorting essential medicines and distributing them into twenty-two bags for the health workers of Kawan Sehat, those who operate in areas without doctors, without pharmacies, and often even without roads.
Every two or three months, Erwin gathers over 100 types of medical supplies: antiseptics, fever reducers like paracetamol and ibuprofen, pain relievers, bandages, sterile eye drops, plasters, antihistamines for allergic reactions, and blood pressure monitors. Each item is carefully selected, sorted, recorded, and packed into field kits for our health workers, community heroes trained to care for hundreds of people dispersed across the most remote villages in eastern Indonesia.
These aren’t symbolic acts. They’re lifelines.
The kits are tracked using our digital app, Kawan Sehat. This allows each worker to report what they use and need, enabling personalised replenishment. This ensures accurate monitoring of medical supplies to track their use and facilitate efficient replenishment. When Erwin embarks on his long journey—sometimes lasting several days—he carries not just supplies, but precisely what each worker needs. These supplies are essential for treating injuries, controlling fevers, preventing infections, and helping neighbors survive.
Erwin rarely talks about his work. But thanks to him, more than a thousand people receive real care each month in inaccessible places. This is the reality of our Primary Medical Care program: a chain of coordination, commitment, and solidarity that stretches across mountains and forests to reach those most in need.
Thanks to the dedicated efforts of our Fair Future and Kawan Baik Foundations, logistics has become an effective form of care.
Alex Wettstein – Fair Future Foundation medico-social camp in East Sumba – Rumah Kambera, Lambanapu – May the 5th, 2025
External Links
List of Related Organizations with Hyperlinks
- Last Mile Health – Like Fair Future, Last Mile Health delivers healthcare to remote areas through mobile medical teams and trains local health workers to save lives.
- Partners In Health – Dedicated to health equity in underserved areas, similar to Fair Future’s medical missions in East Sumba.
- Health In Harmony – Links environmental protection with health services, reflecting Fair Future’s holistic vision of rural well-being.
- SIMA Studios – Narrates stories of global changemakers like Fair Future, focusing on grassroots solutions for global health.
- The Global Fund – Finances community health programs in malaria-endemic areas, much like Fair Future’s work in Umalulu and rural Indonesia.
- SolarBuddy – Collaborates with Fair Future to provide solar-powered solutions to villages lacking electricity, enhancing health and safety.
- World Health Organisation – Guides global health systems and supports health worker training, aligning with Kawan Sehat’s methodology.
