Perspectives and Proposal on International Support in Pediatric Surgery

Abstract

Background/Purpose : The author has been involved in an NGO activity that supports one perinatal hospital in western Nepal (under 5 mortality rate=100/1, 000 live births) since 1998. The problem of international support in pediatric surgery is reported and a solution is proposed. Description : The hospital was started in November 1998 in southern western Nepal, and developed to a regional hospital of 75 beds that provides neonatal care in NICU and Obstetrics with 24-hour availability of Caesarean section. In 2000, during my annual one-week visit, a newborn with omphalocele (2.5kg at birth) and a two-month old infant with Hirschsprung's disease successfully underwent one-stage closure of the abdominal wall and Swenson pull-through without colostomy, respectively. However, a problem remains regarding sustainable support. As it is difficult for an active pediatric surgeon to stay for a sufficient period of time to establish proper pediatric surgery routines in developing countries, a strategy for continuous systematic support is necessary. Summary/Proposal : 1. Organize an international team of Japanese pediatric surgeons that will be dispatched to a selected area. 2. The selection is made by amendments among the pediatric surgeons of the Asian Association of Pediatric Surgeons in the context of friendship and partnership.