I am traveling to Kenya for a two week surgical education trip with the non-profit organization, Ohana One. This trip will be performed in conjunction with Dr David Kulber, plastic and hand surgery at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, and Peter Deptula, plastic and hand surgery at Queens Hospital in Hawaii. Ohana One has extensive experience with surgical trips around the globe and in Africa specifically, visiting Kenya in 2025 for a very successful surgical trip. This year, we hope to expand our impact. We will be partnering with local surgeons and resident trainees at Kenyatta National Hospital and PCEA Chogoria Hospital to provide high-quality surgical care for patients with hand and upper extremity conditions. The majority of these conditions involve acute burn injuries, burn scar contractures, neglected trauma, and congenital hand differences. All surgeries will be performed in collaboration with local surgeons and trainees to provide surgical education through complex cases. In addition, we will include daily didactic lectures to surgical residents on topics within hand surgery such as principle of fracture fixation, nerve repair and transfers, tendon repair and transfers, skin grafting, local tissue coverage, and flap coverage.
The population primarily served by this trip will be local Kenyan citizens who lack access to medical and surgical care. Most of these patients are extremely impoverished. Acute burns can be life-threatening while subacute or chronic traumatic injuries and burn contractures can limit a patient's ability to go to school, work, and participate in their communities. Surgical treatment can be life-changing for these patients. We will be treating both pediatric and adult patients.
Last year, as part of the Ohana One surgical mission and education trip to Kenya, more than 30 complex reconstructive surgeries were performed and wound care provided to even more patients. We anticipate an even larger impact this year. In addition to surgeries performed while on-site, the larger impact includes training local surgeons and residents in specialized reconstructive techniques, which will be complemented by didactic lectures. We build long-term relationships through monthly journal clubs via Zoom and using smart glasses technology to provide ongoing surgical mentorship after this trip.
During our trip, we visited two hospitals within Kenya. We spent the first half of our trip at Kenyatta National Hospital, the second largest hospital in Africa. The second half of the trip was spent at PCEA Chogoria Hospital, a smaller town about 4 hours outside of Nairobi. Both sites served patients who otherwise would not be able to access and afford care. The majority of these patients often presented with complex post-traumatic deformities, burn contractures, deep tissue infections, and congenital differences. In addition to direct patient care, we worked closely with residents in plastic, orthopedic, and general surgery at both sites. We were able to collaborate on complex patient cases, teach treatment approaches and surgical techniques specific to hand education reconstruction, and continue to provide ongoing support for the local teams after returning home.
