SCH Introduces Laparoscopic Surgery
September 5th to September 9th, 2016 marked the inception of first ever laparoscopic surgical camp (led by Dr. Rafique Parkar) at SCH that was supported by the Kenya Society for Endoscopic Specialities – KESES, Kenya Medical and Education Trust (KMET), Covidien/Medtronic and Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH).
This camp not only provided much needed surgical intervention for the participating patients but also served as a KESES-accredited training in laparoscopy. As such, we were also proud to host the current KESES Chairman, Dr. J. Wanyoike Gichuchi and a KESES Executive Board Member, Dr. Francis Were. We are proud to have hosted ob/gyn specialists from Siaya County Hospital, Kenyatta National Hospital, Howard University School of Medicine, MGH, KESES and Maseno University’s School of Medicine.
This camp not only provided much needed surgical intervention for the participating patients but also served as a KESES-accredited training in laparoscopy. As such, we were also proud to host the current KESES Chairman, Dr. J. Wanyoike Gichuchi and a KESES Executive Board Member, Dr. Francis Were. We are proud to have hosted ob/gyn specialists from Siaya County Hospital, Kenyatta National Hospital, Howard University School of Medicine, MGH, KESES and Maseno University’s School of Medicine.
Physicians and patients came from far and wide to access and be trained in laparoscopic surgery. We believe creating access to laparoscopic surgery in this area will greatly improve patient experiences by reducing patient postoperative pain and hospital stay. During the camp, 14 laparoscopic cases were performed successfully.
Through the wonderful work of Mr. Charles Awiti and Ms. Esther Okello from the Covidien/Medtronic, the camp received a laparoscopic tower, several instruments and a laparoscopic simulator for the participants to use to refine their skill sets between cases! Even the hospital staff, interns and pre-interns gave it a try! We would also like to thank KMET for their logistical support for our participants and the MGH Global Health Fellows for their participation in the planning of the camp. We hope that this camp is just the beginning of a robust laparoscopic surgical and training.