Press release
The Ministry of Health, Horizons Trust Gambia and Kanifing General Hospital are delighted to announce that there is a new standard of operating care available for expectant mothers and newborn babies in The Gambia. Two “Smart Pods” have recently arrived at Kanifing General Hospital, which will enable staff to carry out emergency obstetric procedures – such as caesarean sections – in an advanced clinical setting.
The Smart Pods are the result of a long-term collaboration between Horizons Trust Gambia and Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, US. With the support of the Ministry of Health, these mobile units have now arrived from the US and are in use.
The first C-section was successfully completed on 1st September, with gynaecologist Dr GreenHarris at the helm. He sums up the inaugural operation in the Smart Pods: “It’s a blessing to see years of planning materialise, and I was humbled with the honour to do the first obstetric surgery in the first-of-its-kind theatre in our beloved nation.”
Built by Xploration Health and very generously financed by The Trini & O.C. Mendenhall Foundation, this facility aims to decrease maternal and infant mortality in The Gambia.
Dubbed the “Safer Delivery Project”, the Smart Pods follow on from two years of training that Baylor College of Medicine has invested in staff at Kanifing General Hospital.
The hospital’s CEO, Basiru Drammeh, said: “By providing a state-of-the-art environment for maternity surgery, the pods are expected to greatly improve the quality and accessibility of care for women in our community. The arrival of the Smart Pods signals a new era of maternity healthcare in The Gambia.”
The benefactor of the initiative, Mrs Trini Mendenhall Royalty, says: “We as women are nurturing by nature and by this, we can empower women to help make this a better world for our children now and future generations. I am honoured to support this project.”
Dr Sharmila Anandasabapathy, Vice President, Global Programs at the Baylor College of Medicine adds: “We are so pleased to have helped deliver this unique solution to friends and partners in The Gambia, a country which we have worked closely with for nearly a decade now.
One important aspect is the high level of innovation involved in this unit: it is the first portable, container operating room in West Africa for transforming maternal health.”
Dr Melville George, Chairman of Horizons Trust Gambia, concludes: “Thank you to all our partners for making this dream a reality. At Horizons, we are passionate about protecting every expectant mother and newborn baby in The Gambia. The arrival of the Smart Pods is a significant step towards that vision.”
There will be a launch event for the Smart Pods at Kanifing General Hospital on October 23rd at 9.30am.
