Tauranga doctors tackle surgery lists in Fiji
A ‘Friends of Fiji Health’ (FOFH) General Surgical team from New Zealand has successfully carried out nearly 30 operations at Lautoka Hospital – training local staff in the latest laparoscopic (keyhole) techniques.
The eight-person team, led by general surgeon Dr Rishi Ram from Auckland, arrived back in New Zealand this week after a 12-day visit. The Tauranga locals taking part were general surgeon Dr Avinesh Kumar and his GP wife Amrita, anaesthetist Dr Reta McLeod and specialist theatre nurses Jo Dunstan and Tara Mudgway, and specialised neonatal nurse Heather Mc Alley.
The two surgeons’ wives, both GPs, Dr Amrita Kumar, and Dr Ranjani Ram, worked with local doctors in general practice, and also had a training role.
Heather Mc Alley worked at the hospital’s neonatal unit, passing on her skills in the intensive care of premature babies.
The visit is one of a number which have been made by doctors and medical personnel under the FOFH programme which was set up 18 months ago as a charitable trust. Seven Fijian doctors and businessmen who’d immigrated to New Zealand, set up the charity to give something back to their homeland. FOFH’s main aim is to send teams of specialists to Fiji periodically, to provide medical treatment for the neediest locals.
The team arrived in Lautoka on Thursday, September 27, toting boxes full of donated medical supplies, ranging from wound dressings to theatre equipment.
They worked long hours to complete 28 major, often difficult operations, and introduced new technology and techniques. Drs Ram and Kumar and their team worked together to make local medical history as they carried out the first laparascopic operation to remove gallstones (cholecystectomy). The case went well, watched by a number of local surgeons and medical students. The pair also tackled an extremely difficult case in a three hour-plus operation – the removal of a local resident’s enlarged cancerous lump in the neck.
“One of the most satisfying things about the work was visiting patients in the ward next day and seeing their smiling faces, as some had waited in some discomfort a long time for their surgery, says Dr Kumar. “The patients and their families’ gratitude was very touching and rewarding for us.”
Dr Ram says a key focus of the mission was to help train young surgeons on the local medical scene: “We have experience in the latest laparascopic (keyhole) surgery that we were able to pass on to our Fijiian colleagues. We are committed to helping them upskill, to achieve the highest possible standards of clinical excellence and patient safety.”
“The keyhole techniques bring significant benefits to patients including less pain and early recovery.”
Drs Kumar and Ram both worked at Lautoka Hospital early in their careers, so they “well understand some of the challenges that local staff face.
“It’s great to be able to give something back, and it gives us great satisfaction in being able to do so,” says Dr Ram.
The New Zealand team has praised generous contributions received from a variety of businesses and individuals which helped make the visit possible.
They included Grace Hospital in Tauranga, which loaned some equipment, and Pathlab Bay of Plenty which carried out some free cervical smear testing. Other contributors were New Zealand-based medical supplies companies such as Coviden, Ethicon Surgical, Johnson & Johnson, and firms such as Mc Donald’s in both Auckland and Fiji, along with Vodafone.
Dr Ram says that locals in Lautoka who provided generous help included a businessman Depak Tahal who looked after the team on their arrival in Fiji, and loaned a four-wheel drive for them to use. “We are also grateful to Urmila Arya (Dr Amrita Kumar’s sister), for providing excellent home-cooked meals most evenings.”
He adds that Tauranga nurses even collected donated clothing for premature babies and breast pumps for nursing mothers, to take along on the trip.
Dr Ram says their team has been impressed by the professionalism and dedication of Lautoka Hospital staff, and their support in some testing medical situations.
FOFH would be extremely pleased to hear from others who would like to contribute – through either donations , skills or other resources, Dr Ram says. “I should emphasise that FOFH is all about helping the needy who don’t have access to private medical facilities and treatment, complementing the local medical care.”