Operation International shares some lifesaving news with KDHamptons from a very successful medical mission to Rakai, Uganda, where a population of just under 500,000 people must rely on one local hospital that employs only four physicians. The amazing team of physicians, nurses, clinicians and other volunteers attended to over 350 impoverished adults and children, delivered $600,000 worth of medical equipment and supplies, and visited three orphanages.  Many of the medical team are based here in the Hamptons, including nurse Patty Mitchell, who works with my husband Dr. Mark Kot at Southampton Urgent Medical Care.

“Our medical mission to Uganda was very fulfilling for our entire team,” shares Hamptons doctor Medhat Allam, MD, Operation International’s Co-Founder and Chairman of the Board of Directors. “As part of our mission to save as many lives as possible in impoverished countries where people are faced with the lack of quality health services, we performed 72 major complex surgical procedures during 16-hour days on congenital anomalies, severe burn reconstructions, benign and malignant tumors.”

“We experienced many miracles such as this: A woman in labor was facing a near-death situation. She could not deliver her child, and its heartbeat had stopped. Our team performed a C-section to save the mother, and then performed CPR to bring her baby girl back to life. It was a heartwarming moment witnessing the look on the mother’s face as she heard her child cry for the first time after entering the world,” added Allam.

During the mission, Operation International brought equipment and set up three modern, fully functioning operating rooms that included operating room tables, lights, electrocautery machines, suction machines, anesthesia machines, and patient monitors. They also constructed a five-bed modern recovery room, and a three-bed ICU, with two ventilators, patient monitors and two EKG machines.  The project delivered: six patient Transportation stretchers, ten wheelchairs, hundreds of blankets, linens, and gowns; disposable medical supplies for 500 operations; hundreds of pieces of clothes and shoes, and educational materials, as well as 2,500 mosquito nets for orphans and poor families.

Other highlights included being greeted at the airport by Uganda’s Minister of Public Services; meeting the Queen, who gave flowers to team members in appreciation of their work; and a visit with the King of Kooki who paid tribute to our team on his birthday. “We examined patients on the grass, since there was not enough space at the hospital, and we taught orphans to sing. For us, the best medicine is celebrating the joy of life,” said Allam.

Crowdrise for Rakai Uganda Ambulance
As they prepare to send two more of Operation International’s teams to this area later this year, OI is asking for support to help us buy a critically-needed ambulance. Due to poor funding, understaffing, inadequate pay and antiquated equipment, the hospital has one outdated, unreliable ambulance with no stretcher, interior lights, or vital patient monitors. To meet the goal of $100,000 for a functioning ambulance, we are launching a CrowdRise GoFundMe HERE. All funds raised will go directly to this cause.

About Operation International: Operation International, formerly known as International Surgical Mission Support (ISMS), is a secular, non-political, humanitarian organization founded in 1996 by Medhat Allam, MD; Ravi Kothuru, MD; and Robert Mineo, CRNA, who aspired to offer medical aid to adults and children suffering from the lack of quality healthcare in over 23 impoverished countries, including Africa, Asia, and South and Central America. In line with its commitment to impact underserved communities for years to come, Operation International also offers on-site education and training to local health care workers during each of its medical missions.

Team NY, the first Operation International team, made its maiden mission to Haiti in 1997, where founders of the organization witnessed firsthand the devastating effects of poverty and inadequate medical care. Since its inception, teams of doctors, clinicians, nurses, and aides have expanded to include over 200 medical professionals currently providing services through many individual Chapters throughout the United States.

Operation International has developed alliances with humanitarian organizations partners including the United Nations, Rotary International, Agnes Varis Trust, Americares, AFYA Foundation, Soles 4 Souls and Hospital Sisters Mission Outreach. In partnership with Dooley Intermed, the organization is building the first eye hospital in the Himalayan area of Bhakunde Besi in Nepal with a population of over 600,000 people.

Operation International is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit 45-0523129 headquartered at 225 Windmill Lane Southampton, Suite 1, NY 11968 +1 (631) 287-6202. For more information, visit our website at https://www.operationinternational.org/ or contact us at info@operationinternational.org