After nearly three decades of service to children and families in Cambodia and Laos, Kazumi Akao, Outreach Director at Lao Friends Hospital for Children, has been honored with the prestigious Japanese Foreign Minister’s Commendation
The award was presented on October 29, 2026, in Vientiane by H.E. Mr. Tsutomu Koizumi, Ambassador of Japan to the Lao People's Democratic Republic.
For those who know Kazumi, affectionately called "Kazu," this recognition comes as no surprise. Her warmth and genuine care for the children and families she meets have made her a much-loved member of the Friends Without A Border family.
Kazu’s beginnings, starting in Cambodia
Kazumi's journey with Friends Without A Border began in 1999, when she joined the newly opened Angkor Hospital for Children in Siem Reap, Cambodia, as a volunteer nurse.
A registered nurse in both Japan and the United States, with a professional background in HIV care and homecare nursing, she brought with her not only valuable clinical expertise but also a strong belief that caring for patients goes beyond treating their illnesses.
During her years in Cambodia, she helped strengthen nursing education and develop outreach services, ensuring children and families continued receiving the care and support they needed after leaving the hospital.
In 2013,
Kazumi brought that same dedication to Laos, playing an important role in establishing Lao Friends Hospital for Children in Luang Prabang, which opened its doors in 2015. She has also served as the Representative of Friends Without A Border Japan since 2016.
Pioneering Outreach Service
In countries like Cambodia and Laos, where hospital-based outreach and home-visit services have not traditionally been a standard part of healthcare, Kazumi helped pioneer a different approach to caring for children. She played a key role in developing outreach programs and training local healthcare teams, establishing services that continue to operate in both countries today.
In northern Laos, this work is especially important. Many children treated at Lao Friends Hospital for Children are well enough to be discharged but still require ongoing medical attention, monitoring, or support at home. Yet returning to the hospital for follow-up appointments is not always possible. Many families live in remote villages, sometimes hours away, with limited transport options and little or no money to cover the journey.
Kazumi understood that a child's recovery shouldn't depend on whether their family can afford to return to the hospital. Over the years, she has traveled countless kilometers, visiting children recovering from serious illnesses, living with disabilities, or experiencing severe malnutrition. At the height of her outreach work, she personally conducted approximately 300 home visits in a single year, providing nursing care, practical guidance, and reassurance to families.
Beyond patient care, Kazumi has invested deeply in training and mentoring local healthcare professionals, helping build a skilled local Outreach Team that continues this essential work today. Her legacy is not only in the children she has cared for, but also in the local expertise she has helped establish in both Cambodia and Laos..
A Recognition Close to Our Hearts
Over the years, Kazumi has helped shape not only the healthcare services we provide, but also the way we care for children and their families. Her belief that every child deserves compassion, dignity, and respect reflects the heart of Friends Without A Border's mission.
To many of us at LFHC and Friends Without A Border, Kazu is much more than a colleague. She's a mentor, a friend, and someone who has been part of the hospital's story from the very beginning.
From all of us at Friends Without A Border and Lao Friends Hospital for Children, congratulations, Kazu!
Thank you for the many years of dedication, the knowledge you've shared, and, above all, the care you've given and contiue to care to so many children and families.
We couldn't be happier to see her incredible work receive this well-deserved recognition.
