The annual mission to Malindi, Kenya, is led by Dr. James Netterville and the Vanderbilt Department of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery. This trip serves a dual purpose: to deliver high-quality head and neck surgical care to the local community, and to contribute meaningfully to the education of regional surgical trainees—including medical students, otolaryngology residents, and fellows from Kenya and neighboring countries.
Surgical procedures are performed in collaboration with local attending head and neck surgeons who are long-standing partners in this educational initiative and who provide year-round care to the community. Central to our mission is the creation of sustainable, high-impact clinical and educational improvements in the management of otolaryngologic conditions, particularly head and neck cancers. Our long-term goal is to support the development of a Head and Neck Surgical Oncology Fellowship based in Malindi through culturally aware teaching partnerships, comprehensive trip planning, and ongoing collaboration.
I participated in this mission last year and will be returning as the senior resident on this year’s trip. My role will be multifaceted: I will be actively involved in the pre- and postoperative care of patients, including diagnostic workup, family communication, and hands-on postoperative management. My role also focuses task/project delegation to the junior residents and medical students. I will continue our longitudinal initiatives in pediatric hearing screening. In addition, I plan to contribute to the global health literature by publishing collaborative research on our efforts with the host community, with the goal of sharing our impact and advancing the global exchange of surgical knowledge.
The primary stakeholders for this ongoing mission are the local patients—both current and future—and the local head and neck surgeons of Kenya (and surrounding nations). Patients in this region often present with a wide range of advanced head and neck diseases, including benign and malignant tumors, thyroid disorders, and salivary gland pathology. Many lack access to consistent, specialized surgical care and would otherwise need to travel long distances to receive treatment. Our mission aims to provide high-quality, compassionate care within their own community, delivered by a trusted team.
Equally central to our work is building long-term capacity among local ENT surgeons. By focusing on education and training using existing equipment and healthcare infrastructure, we strive to create a sustainable model of care that continues to serve the community in our absence. Over nearly three decades, this trip has touched nearly every head and neck surgeon in the region. Some of these surgeons have stayed in the region and continued serving the coastal population of Kenya, while others have spread to provide high level care in other countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.
This year marks the 30th mission serving the Kenyan population, underscoring our long-term commitment to the region. The decision to focus efforts in Malindi was made in collaboration with local otolaryngology providers, who identified a clear and ongoing need. While previous Vanderbilt-led surgical efforts helped establish a thriving otolaryngology program and a Head and Neck Surgical Oncology fellowship in Kijabe (Kenya), Malindi remained critically underserved in this specialty. That need became the driving force behind selecting Malindi as a host site, where we have now maintained an active annual presence for over eight years.
I had the great privilege of participating in last year’s mission, during which our team performed over 60 major operations and more than 70 procedures under local anesthesia. The experience highlighted both the tremendous clinical need and the strength of our partnership with the local surgical teams. I look forward to returning this year as the senior resident and building further on this impactful collaboration.
This year, we aim to broaden our impact in both clinical service and medical education through a series of targeted initiatives. We are bringing along 3 additional US surgeons and accompanying nursing staff to increase our clinical and teaching bandwidth. Over a dozen publications focused on global health delivery, hearing screening, and ultrasound use have been birthed from this mission trip, which highlights the larger scale academic impact that this trip embodies. This year, we intend to continue such efforts including new anesthesia led initiatives to enhance post-operative recovery and a new triaging system for patient screening/selection. We will also continue our work on pediatric hearing screenings and assist in the diagnostic evaluation of children with suspected hearing impairments. These efforts are designed to enhance early identification and intervention, addressing a critical gap in pediatric care in the region.
Finally, we believe that this mission will have a meaningful and lasting impact on the U.S.-based participants as well. By engaging in a collaborative and sustainability-focused global health initiative, participants are expected to gain a deeper understanding of context-appropriate medical care, the importance of cultural humility, and the value of building enduring partnerships based on trust, integrity, and mutual respect. Prior trip participants have continued to integrate global health into their respective careers, thus amplifying the impact of our mission on a broader scale.
During our 2-week surgical camp in Malindi, we were able to provide specialty surgical care to over 60 with complex diseases of the head/neck, as well as perform more than 50 awake procedures under local anesthesia for less complex pathology. More than 15 Kenyan otolaryngologists (senior attendings, junior faculty, residents) participated in the camp and were able to advance their capabilities in screening, radiologic evaluation, preoperative counseling, surgical technique, and postoperative care.
