Mission to Zanzibar: Advancing Neurosurgery in the Developing World by Ernest Wright
The majority of the world’s population does not have access to quality neurosurgical care. In places where access to clean water is not guaranteed, neurosurgery may seem like a frivolous luxury. But the reality is that a combination of birth defects, communicable diseases, and traffic accidents conspire to create a pressing demand for lifesaving neurosurgical procedures in the developing world. Adults and children die every day for lack of a trained neurosurgeon.
As the developing world continues to make advances, basic operating facilities are increasingly common at regional referral hospitals. However, the training of qualified neurosurgeons to staff these facilities continues to lag behind. An American team consisting of surgeons, physician assistants, and nurses banded together in early 2015 with the goal of teaching surgeons in developing countries how to perform basic but lifesaving neurosurgical procedures. The following is a photo essay documenting some of our experiences in the Zanzibar archipelago of islands.
