Mombasa (Kenya) - Mission Report 2024

Mission Report SAWUBONA 02_2024 English.pdf

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Mission Report SAWUBONA 02_2024 Deutsch.pdf

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SAWUBONA Foundation Mission Report 02/2024

Mission period: 03.-09.02.2024

Members of Mission:

Prof. Dr. J. Oertel, neurosurgeon; Prof. Dr. Dr. U. Kehler, neurosurgeon; Dr. D. München, neurosurgeon, ICU Specialist; Dr. F. Teping, neurosurgeon; Dr. F. Vitulli, chief resident in neurosurgery; J. Alisauskas, resident in neurosurgery; J. Degiannis, resident in neurosurgery; A. Bansberg, resident in neurosurgery, Virginia Weiss, Nurse

Local Contact and Coordinator: Dr. Ben Okanga, neurosurgeon

With great pleasure we report of the 4th mission of the Sawubona foundation in the Coast General Teaching and Referral Hospital (CGTRH) in Mombasa, Kenya.

Part of the group participated in their 4th Mombasa mission since 2021 (M. München, V. Weiß, A. Bansberg, F. Teping, J. Oertel). This allowed for establishing a successful routine and for developing growing relationships with the locals over the past years. Additionally, the team was enriched by Jason Degiannis and Joris Alisauskas of the Saarland university team. For the first time, two fellows who are not part of the Saarland University hospital participated. We proudly introduced Prof. Dr. Dr. Uwe Kehler, head of department of neurosurgery of the Asklepios hospital in Hamburg, Germany and well known for his research and expertise in hydrocephalus treatment, as well as Dr. Francesca Vitulli, chief resident in neurosurgery at University of Naples Federico II, Italy, working in a pediatric neurosurgery unit in Genoa, Italy.

Again, the local coordination was realized by our highly esteemed partner Dr. Ben Okanga, who in September 2023 attended for the first time the annual International Neuroendoscopy Week in Homburg / Saar, Germany as our special guest. We were delighted to consolidate our bonds and foster the specialist and social exchange.

On Saturday, 3rd February we conducted a successful outpatient clinic coordinated by Dr. Ben Okanga with a total of 32 patients receiving neurological and neurosurgical evaluations. On this basis, the surgeries were scheduled for the following week. Due to local announcement for our mission in advance, in the following days many more patients sought out the hospital for neurosurgical evaluation and were seen by the team in between the surgeries.

During the week, we performed in total 17 surgeries working simultaneously in two theatres. Like in the prior missions, the procedures were again versatile. However, compared to the past once again an increasing number of complex cases was noted. 

Besides various implantations of ventriculoperitoneal shunting systems and endoscopic third ventriculostomies in children, one of them including an endoscopic fenestration of a large arachnoid cyst, in total six intracranial tumors have been treated surgically, among them two pediatric cases with huge posterior fossa tumors. Furthermore, four adult patients underwent lumbar or cervical decompression and fusion. 

On Wednesday morning, we were able to realize two talks for the surgery residents of the hospital. The first topic was traumatic brain injury, given by Prof. J. Oertel, and the second talk dealt with the treatment of lumbar spinal stenosis and was held by Prof. U. Kehler.

As mentioned in prior reports, our indispensable members Dr. Dorothea München as the ICU-Specialist and Virginia Weiss as nurse and local coordinator were responsible for the follow-up of patients. This outpatient clinic gains every mission more extent. Seeing patients who underwent surgeries in former missions is an important opportunity to evaluate our work but also in some cases a moment of joyful reunion.

We look back on a very challenging but fulfilling and in total successful mission which only could be realized due to the support, patience and endurance of the local residents, scrub nurses, anesthesiologists, ICU-staff and, of course, Dr. Ben Okanga.

Friday was the last day of our mission. While one part of the group stayed at the CGTRH performing three more surgeries, the other part of the group headed north to the smaller city Kilifi. Beforehand, we had been asked to perform a mission there by the Department of Health of Kilifi County. We visited the local hospital and got in personal contact with the locals to evaluate the opportunities to realize a begin of a new SAWUBONA foundation project. We will stay in touch with the local counterparts to work out a plan for a mission in the future.

With the continuous support of all colleagues from Homburg Germany, the new firsttimer from Hamburg and Naples this mission could be successfully accomplished. We particularly thank the generous donations from Germany which allowed us to buy shunt systems and material for duraplasty which is not available in Kenya.

The contacts to Mombasa are strong, and the facility is appropriate for our needs. Thus, we will try to continue in Mombasa in any case regardless of additional opportunities in Kilifi or elsewhere.

The next mission in the CGTRH, Mombasa, is scheduled for February 2025.

 On behalf of all participants,

Almud Bansberg & Prof. Dr. Joachim Oertel