KidsOR announce first project in central Asia

Kids Operating Room are delighted to confirm that we are set to install our first ever Operating Room in central Asia; at the Ataturk Children's Hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan.

One of our most challenging projects to date, the state-of-the-art paediatric facility will equip surgeons in the hospital who have been working with a critical lack of equipment or resources to treat children. 

Afghanistan has an exceptionally large child population with a dangerous lack of access to safe surgery and is reported by UNICEF to have one of the highest child mortality rates in the world.

Currently at sea, the shipment is on track to arrive in Kabul by the end of the year. A team of local biomedical engineers are already at hand to install the equipment with a view of operations taking place from as early as spring 2023.

Our co-founder Nicola Wood said: “The tireless effort from our team to make this possible has been breath-taking. Afghanistan is one of the hardest places in the world to be a child and there is a huge and desperate need for a paediatric surgery facility. This installation will directly save lives, as well as allow children to live their lives free from disability and pain.

Ultimately, it will transform the futures of vulnerable children and their families. Every child deserves access to surgery and we’re committed to putting the resources in place to make this happen for children across the globe.

Nicola Wood

“Garreth and I feel very proud that Kids Operating Room are now in Afghanistan and feel strongly that it is a country that will particularly benefit from these facilities.”

We hope the facility will provide capacity for around 1,000 children to be treated every year.

The inspiration for the project follows a partnership formed with global surgery expert Dr. Dunya Moghul.

She told us: “There is a huge and desperate need for paediatric surgery in Kabul and I’m proud to work with KidsOR to get children access to the safe surgery they so badly need.

“Surgery is a basic human right that must sit at the heart of any sustainable healthcare system. By providing access to safe paediatric surgery, we are breaking new ground to save children's lives.”

“Currently, paediatric surgeons are working with very old equipment that is often faulty or equipment that is designed for adults. This means providing surgical services for children in these settings is exceedingly difficult and a lot of time is lost.

“The installation will not only provide a safe, clean facility for surgery but it will also provide brand new dedicated children’s equipment.”

At Kids Operating Room, we believe that there needs to be a global commitment to strengthening health systems to ensure that no child gets left behind because of a lack of access to vital surgery.

There's so much more work to do. With more than 1 billion children living currently without access to safe surgery, there's still so much needless pain, suffering and death due to conditions that could be treated with an operation. Help us reach these children. Just £75 can fund a life-saving operation for a child.

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