The Result
1.75 billion children live in countries without access to safe surgery.
But what does No Room to Operate really mean for a family arriving at hospital with a sick child.
Scroll through Mo's story below to see...
Mohammed Koudougou, living in the Ivory Coast with his mother, was a happy and healthy 2-year-old boy.
Until he wasn't.
Overnight, an agonising, sharp pain had developed in his abdomen. He was suffering chronic pain in his stomach, and experiencing severe urinary issues.
His mother, naturally, was incredibly worried.
They rushed to their nearest hospital.
"We cannot treat him here."
Devastating words for Mohamed's mother to receive.
Stood in an overcrowded hospital with her sick son in her arms, she listened, helplessly, as a doctor explained to her that they couldn't do anything for her.
There was no surgeon available, no anaesthetist, no tools, no time and no capacity, he told her.
Quite simply – there was No Room to Operate.
Mohamed's condition was worsening by the hour.
Clock ticking, his mother feared the very worst for her little boy.
Thankfully, an option appeared to them.
200km away was Abidjan. A city with a large, district hospital and a dedicated paediatric facility - installed by Kids Operating Room.
The pair embarked on the trip.
But for families living in low- & middle-income countries; making this journey isn't always possible.
To travel long distances is a challenge. Transport isn't always easy, and infrastructure not always available. It's expensive. Families spend money they don't have & are forced to take time off work that they can't afford. All the while, they regularly travel with no guarantee that they will receive the treatment they're looking for. The decision is incredibly difficult.
They arrived and Mohamed was diagnosed. He was suffering from a painful & infected urethral obstruction. Left untreated, it would have potentially fatal consequences.
The surgical team, equipped with all the paediatric resources they needed, operated.
Mohamed's life was saved.
But without this dedicated Kids Operating Room facility, things would have been very different - and the outcome could have been devastating for him and his family.
Now think, 9 out of 10 children living in low- and middle-income countries have no access to safe, timely surgery when they need it. 9 out of 10 of these stories, of children just like Mohamed, don't have a happy ending.
Our work has already provided 100,000 life-changing paediatric operations. We need your help to reach the next 100,000. It costs just £75 to fund 1 operation. £75 to change a child, a family's, life forever.
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