As usual, the Liberia team had a busy day! A couple of updates from yesterday…..remember sweet Success? Here she is with her mom after a “successful” surgery today! Lots of other kids benefitted from urology and ENT surgeries today as well. So much joy! Biomedical volunteer, John Norberg, collected donations from friends and family in the U.S. and brought tool kits for his Liberian partners, allowing them to repair and maintain essential medical equipment at Firestone Duside Hospital. #Liberia #cleftstrong #GlobalHealth #pediatricsurgery #CSI
We were excited to learn that our first patient today had an auspicious name: Success. This little 13-month-old ENT patient was one of 10 children who received free surgery today. We'd definitely call that a SUCCESS story.
Dr. Tabeh Freeman, an ENT surgeon from JFK Hospital in Monrovia, Liberia, joined our team to work with CSI surgeon Dr. Greg Allen. We're thrilled at the opportunity to deepen our collaboration with a teaching hospital in Liberia, and are grateful to Firestone for helping facilitate this advanced training.
And in honor of CRNA week, we celebrated Lynn Randall, Christy Millard, and Dan Chow. Thanks for all you are doing this week in Liberia!
#cleftstrong #nonprofit #pediatricsurgery #globalhealth #Liberia
Today, our team hit the ground running with supply and OR setup and patient screening. The team screened 70 patients, with 30-45 scheduled for surgery this week.
But there was also time for reconnecting and sharing stories. Lisa Strazz, a first-time volunteer nurse, shared photos with the team from when she was born at Duside Hospital in 1970, when her father was a Firestone plantation manager in Liberia. It was her first time returning to her birthplace, adding even more meaning to this trip for her.
And patient support volunteer Elyse Vandersteen reconnected with one of our patients from 2024. Eratio, who recently celebrated his 13th birthday, is back for a repair surgery this week. He shared with Elyse that he wants to be a doctor someday. Tomorrow, day 1 of surgeries begins.
#Liberia #nonprofit #pediatricsurgery #GlobalHealth
Today, our volunteers were out in the community providing deworming medication followed by lollipops to help with the bitter aftertaste 🍭.
CSI and Firestone Liberia have been partnering for more than a decade to provide large-scale community health outreach, including deworming initiatives, per WHO guidelines, that serve tens of thousands of children annually. Long-term deworming for children in low/middle-income countries yields significant benefits — supporting better nutrition, stronger learning, and healthier futures for children and communities alike.
Yesterday, our advance team led trauma and CPR education at DuSide Hospital while preparing for the busy weeks ahead. Tomorrow is pre-screening day, and we’re incredibly excited for what’s to come!
#nonprofit #pediatricsurgery #globalhealth #Liberia
“We were very shameful about the baby's cleft before surgery, now we are proud and we feel very happy about the surgery. We would like to thank you very much.” Parent, Ethiopia