The 2014
CIA estimated average life expectancy in Sierra Leone was 57.39 years. In 2015, after improvements in health in other poorer countries life expectancy for both men and women was the lowest in the world.
Disability It is estimated that there are about 450,000 disabled people in Sierra Leone, though number could be under-estimated. The founding members of the Coalition were the
Sierra Leone Red Cross Society,
LFR International, the
University of Makeni,
Holy Spirit Hospital, and
Agency for Rural Community Transformation. The establishment of the FRCSL was timely as the 72nd
World Health Assembly had declared emergency care systems essential to
universal health coverage in May. The Coalition began work in
Makeni, training 1,000 community members to be first responders over a two-month period and equipping each with first aid skills and materials.
Endemic diseases Yellow fever and
malaria are endemic to Sierra Leone. Sierra Leone's entire estimated population of 6.5 million is vulnerable to malaria. Over two million outpatient visits are reported due to malaria annually, of which half are children under five years of age. The 2015 maternal mortality rate per 100,000 births for Sierra Leone is 1,360. This is compared with 970 in 2010 and 1032 in 2008. The under 5 mortality rate, per 1,000 births is 198 and the neonatal mortality as a percentage of under 5's mortality is 25. In Sierra Leone the number of midwives per 1,000 live births is 1 and the lifetime risk of death for pregnant women 1 in 21. Since the
Ebola outbreak of 2014/2015, healthcare facilities have been associated with pain and death. Africans are choosing to reject the safety of hospitals out for any sort of care, especially for childbirth. It is estimated that maternal mortality rates will increase by 74 percent in the coming years. This statistic has been called the "next wave of deaths from Ebola " due to the potential increase in maternal deaths because of the avoidance of hospitals. The
Paul E. Farmer Maternal Center of Excellence in
Koidu contains the nation's only
neonatal intensive care unit. The
maternity hospital opened in 2026 through partnership between the Sierra Leonean government and
Partners in Health.
Mental health Mental health care in Sierra Leone is almost non-existent. Many sufferers try to cure themselves with the help of traditional healers. During the
Civil War (1991–2002), many soldiers took part in atrocities and many children were forced to fight. This left them traumatised, with an estimated 400,000 people (by 2009) being mentally ill. Thousands of former child soldiers have fallen into substance abuse as they try to blunt their memories using
cannabis and Kush, the newly developed synthetic drug. There is only one psychiatric facility in Sierra Leone, the
Sierra Leone Psychiatric Teaching Hospital in
Freetown. It gained media attention in 2024 for its participation in mental health reform across the country.
Opioid addiction “Kush” is a synthetic drug prevalent in Sierra Leone, containing synthetic opioids in the form of
Nitazenes, or synthetic cannabinoids. The synthetic opioids and cannabinoids in the drugs are highly addictive.
Ebola In 2014 there was an outbreak of the
Ebola virus in Sierra Leone. As of August 4, 2014, there had been 691 cases of Ebola in Sierra Leone and 286 deaths.
COVID-19 On March 31, 2020 the
coronavirus first reached Sierra Leone. == Health conditions and human rights in Sierra Leone ==