The UMH Board of Trustees has posthumously recognized Dr. Francisco Colomina for his contributions to the training of health care professionals of intensive care units at the Rwandan hospitals of Nemba and Ruhengeri. These contributions were made possible by the UMH Headquarters in Rwanda Chair, and the recognition for them was given at the tenth edition of the UMH Board of Trustees Institutional Chair Awards Ceremony.

The award was accepted by his wife, María José Serralta Gomis. Presenters of the award included the Director of the Chair, Javier Gimenos, and UMH Vice Rector for Internationalization and Cooperation, Vicente Micol.

“[Colomina] was an essential cog for a significant number of achievements of our chair in Rwanda. Special mention must be made of his involvement since 2018 towards improving healthcare quality in the African country,” emphasized Gimeno about Dr. Colomina.

Colomina was involved in various projects that trained health care personnel, at both the Nemba and Ruhengeri hospitals, in addition to securing private funding to improve the material and infrastructure and both facilities.

Furthermore, Colomina was one of the driving forces behind the creation of the Nemba Hospital ICU as well as for the agreement between the UMH and SEMICYUC (Spanish Society of Intensive Care Medicine, Critical Care and Coronary Units) for the establishment of training programs for Rwandan nursing and medical personnel on intensive care techniques.

He was also a strong advocate for international cooperation, which is what he focused on during the final years of his career. Colomina participated actively in the UMH Headquarters in Rwanda Chair, where he collaborated, coordinated with, and promoted several of the chair’s projects, among them, the creation, equipping, and training of UCI personnel, first at Nemba Hospital, and then later at Ruhengeri Hospital. Colomina was also an external professor at the UMH and a member of the Advisory Board for the UMH Headquarters in Rwanda Chair.