EVN facility profile · District-level hospital · Rural medicine · 24-hour emergency · Safari gateway
Karatu Lutheran Hospital has served the town of Karatu, on the road to the Ngorongoro Crater, since 1954: a 100-bed Lutheran hospital about 146 km from Arusha, with a 24-hour emergency department, an ICU, theatres, comprehensive emergency obstetric care and a strong microbiology laboratory. A well-equipped rural placement, and the gateway to the Ngorongoro Crater, the Serengeti, Lake Manyara and Tarangire national parks.
Placements at Karatu Lutheran Hospital from $975 for 2 weeks (minimum stay), including accommodation with breakfast and dinner, the road transfer from Arusha, and airport pick-up.Questions about this hospital? Ask a local doctor on our team: free, no obligation.
Includes airport pick-up and drop-off, accommodation with breakfast and dinner, the road transfer to and from Karatu, placement fee and coordinator, and 24/7 support.
Full price list, up to 12 weeksOur preferred option in Karatu. Breakfast and dinner included.
Live with a local family, subject to availability. Breakfast and dinner included.
Karatu is about 146 km from Arusha, roughly 2.5 hours by road. The road transfer to and from Karatu is included in your fee. Because of the distance, placements here are a minimum of 2 weeks.
Karatu Lutheran Hospital (Hospitali ya Kilutheri Karatu) is a faith-based hospital owned by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT), Northern Diocese. It sits in Bashay, Qurus ward, in Karatu District, about 146 km west of Arusha city on the road to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, and has served the town and the surrounding rural communities since 1954.
With 100 beds, it offers the full case mix of a rural hospital: a 24-hour emergency department, an intensive care unit, major and minor theatres, male, female and paediatric wards, and a maternity and labour ward providing comprehensive emergency obstetric care. Diagnostics include digital X-ray, ultrasound, ECG and echocardiography.
The laboratory runs culture and sensitivity, fungal tests and India ink staining for cryptococcal meningitis, and the hospital runs diabetes care, management of complicated malaria, and HIV care and treatment (CTC) for adults and children. A strong choice for rural medicine, infectious disease and global health. Karatu is also the gateway to the Ngorongoro Crater, the Serengeti, Lake Manyara and Tarangire national parks, so weekend safaris are easy to arrange.
Photo: Tnemtsoni, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0 (cropped)
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Your placement is tailored to your goals: one department or a few, agreed before you arrive.
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You follow the hospital's staff through their day, with an experienced EVN-assigned supervisor in your field. You leave with a supervisor reference and completion certificate, and we complete your university's elective paperwork.
You learn as part of the clinical team: working alongside the hospital's doctors, clinical officers, nurses and midwives: joining ward rounds, discussing cases, and following patients through clinics, the labour ward and theatre.
How involved you become is guided by your supervisor, in line with your level of training, your university's guidelines and, above all, patient safety and consent. Where you'll learn:
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Yes. Every placement is tailored to your learning goals. Tell us what you want to see and we agree your departments with you before you arrive: one department or several.
Yes. Depending on your goals, your placement can rotate across more than one of our partner hospitals in Arusha.
Karatu Lutheran Hospital is in Karatu, about 146 km west of Arusha on the road to the Ngorongoro Crater, roughly 2.5 hours by road. The road transfer to and from Karatu is included in your programme fee, and you stay locally in Karatu: hostel as standard, or a host family on request. Because of the distance, placements here are a minimum of 2 weeks.
An experienced clinician in your field, arranged by EVN. Our team are local doctors who work in Arusha's hospitals, so we can match you with someone who teaches.
You learn alongside the hospital's clinical team on ward rounds, in clinics, on the labour ward and in theatre. Your supervisor guides how involved you become, based on your level of training, your university's guidelines and patient safety.
Official hours are Monday to Friday, 07:30 to 15:30. The day starts with a clinical meeting at 07:30, which you can join or skip by starting at 08:00, and you may leave earlier. Night shifts are optional if you want extra experience.
Airport pick-up and drop-off, accommodation with breakfast and dinner, the road transfer to and from Karatu, a pre-departure briefing, 24/7 emergency support, the placement fee and coordinator, and a city tour. Flights, visa and permit fees, insurance, vaccinations and lunch are not included.
Healthcare students in their clinical years and qualified healthcare professionals. Placements are carried out in English.
Visa and permit requirements are set by the Tanzania Immigration Department and can change, so please check the official guidelines before you travel. Permit fees are not included in the programme fee. If anything is unclear, ask us.
Official visa guidelines (Tanzania Immigration)
Minimum 2 weeks, from $975: accommodation, the road transfer from Arusha and airport pick-up included. A local doctor on our team will reply to you.
