Karen Forest

Dr. Karen Forrest is the Head of Clinical Services who plays a pivotal leadership role in strengthening the quality of health care delivery at the Clinical Services Department (CSD). Dr. Forrest is an internal physician with a specialization in gastroenterology. She obtained her medical qualifications at the University of Oxford and then did postgraduate training in Liverpool. She has postgraduate qualifications in medical education. She also did her Masters in theology and anthropology in Kenya, completing a research project on Gambian understandings of illness and disease.

Karen has worked in The Gambia since 2011. Before joining The Unit in 2015, Karen was previously the Doctor-in-charge of Sibanor Health Centre in Foni Bintang, Upper River Region (URR). Her passion for providing optimum care to her patients is a clear manifestation of how she quickly grasped and can fluently speak Mandinka.