Sr. Miriam, a native of County Limerick Ireland entered the Franciscan Missionaries for Africa religious order in 1956. She graduated from University College Cork (UCC) with a degree in Medicine in 1964. Miriam studied Obstetrics in Birmingham UK, receiving her Membership of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (MRCOG) in 1969 and received a Fellowship in Obstetrics & Gynaecology (FRCOG) in 1982. In 1969, Miriam moved to Uganda in East Africa and was one of the first qualified obstetricians in the country. She spent the next 30 years working at St Francis Hospital Nsambya in the capital city of Kampala. As a newly qualified medic in Uganda, Miriam faced many challenges due to limited medical supplies, precarious power sources and unfamiliar medical conditions, illnesses and viruses. As the only referral hospital, she was responsible for complicated obstetric cases during a time when Uganda was experiencing civil war. During her time, Miriam was instrumental in training midwives and doctors in Uganda and was able to hand over the running of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology to a Ugandan doctor whom she had mentored.
Responding to the HIV and AIDS pandemic Sr. Miriam supported the establishment of local clinics and mobile home-based care programmes, to care for patients with HIV and AIDS and the rising number of ‘AIDS-orphans’ as a result of the pandemic. In 1993, she founded Youth Alive to support young people in making responsible choices and provide support programmes to help prevent the spread of HIV and AIDS. The Youth Alive programme continues today and has been extended to 21 African countries. In 1998 Miriam was relocated to Kenya, where she continued to establish care and prevention programmes.
Sr Miriam was Superior of her congregation for 12 years and Chairperson of the Irish Missionary Union. Since her retirement from the medical profession, Sr. Miriam has been working with Hands of Care & Hope based in Kariobangi and Huruma, low-income settlements in Nairobi Kenya, supporting marginalised children, out-of-school youth and those living with HIV.
Miriam has received many awards for her work. In 2006 she was honoured by Harvard University, the Church of Uganda and the Templeton Foundation for her pioneering work with home-based HIV prevention in 2006. In 2008, she was presented with a recognition award from the President and Parliament of Uganda for her pioneering work in HIV and AIDS. In 2015, she was awarded the Irish Presidential Distinguished Service Award by President Michael D Higgins.
Currently there are FMSA Sisters serving in Uganda, Kenya, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Sudan, America, Ireland and Scotland.
