This week brought together so much teamwork and coordination — all for one important purpose: providing children the life-changing specialized care they need.
More details (and numbers!) to come as our team returns. For now, enjoy a few highlights from the week.
Bravo, team!
#chaginglives #GlobalHealth #pediatricsurgery #cleftstrong
An estimated 1.7 billion children worldwide lack access to safe, specialized surgical care and anesthesia, with the majority living in low- and middle-income countries. In Africa, most countries have fewer than 0.5 anesthesia providers per 100,000 people — and specialist shortages are just one of the barriers limiting access to care.
Investing in pediatric anesthesia training and developing future leaders is vital to improving perioperative care for children in Africa. Fortunately, many talented anesthesia colleagues in Ethiopia are eager to deepen their skills.
CSI is thrilled to support growth in this area. We have engaged longtime volunteer Dr. Zipporah Gathuya as a Program Consultant to lead our surgical outreach and training initiatives in Ethiopia and other programs in Africa. You can see Dr. Gathuya (“Zippy” to those who know her) in action this week, supporting our surgical fellowship training there.
An internationally recognized pediatric anesthesiologist with over 20 years of experience across the public and private sectors, Dr. Gathuya is based at The Nairobi Hospital in Kenya. She brings new organizational leadership to CSI, along with first-hand expertise and strong cultural competence, to elevate pediatric anesthesia education and expand access to resources for our partners.
Welcome to the CSI clinical leadership team, Dr. Gathuya!
#pediatricanesthesia #pediatricsurgery #globalhealth
With patients coming from across Ethiopia and surrounding regions, we need to communicate with families who speak one or more languages or dialects. We rely on our interpreter partners to bridge that gap.
Interpreters are often the voices and ears for our patients and their families. For more than 10 years, Taitu Tour and Travel Ethiopia has been an essential partner in Ethiopia, providing travel and logistical support and placing interpreters alongside CSI teams. They help us connect with families, hear their stories, and understand their needs, communicating with clarity and compassion in fast-moving medical and social environments.
We are grateful for the passion they bring to this work. Thank you to the entire Taitu Tours team! 🙏
#nonprofit #pediatricsurgery #medicalinterpreter
Ethiopia surgical day #3 - This is Dessalegn 💙 He and his father traveled to Bahir Dar from the northernmost part of Ethiopia — a two day bus ride — for his second urology surgery. Once he has healed, he will be able to urinate “normally” without worrying about infections.
So often, the results of our medical care go beyond physical health. For Dessalegn, this means both functional and social continence.
Our time with patients and their families also begins before the operating room, as we keep them calm and engaged in advance of surgery. With patients as sweet as Dessalegn, this rarely feels like work.
#GlobalHealth #pediatricsurgery #changinglivesonechildatatime
“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
