The first Pan-African Surgical Conference in February 2025 brought together leading experts, surgeons, policymakers, and organisations to share ideas, create partnerships, and find innovative ways to address Africa’s critical surgical care shortage.
Africa has the fewest surgeons and anaethetists per capita worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. For every 10,000 people, there are just two doctors and 11 nurses and midwives, compared to 41 doctors and 113 nurses and midwives in North America.
Our Operation Smile team traveled to Mthatha over the weekend of 1-3 November to bring life changing surgery to cleft patients from the surrounding rural areas.
Operation Smile, together with Microsoft, is piloting an AI programme to assist in patient diagnosis and educating surgeons in remote areas.
From 24-28 July at the Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital in Johannesburg, Operation Smile and The Smile Foundation joined forces for a Madiba Smile Relay surgical programme to help children born with cleft lip.
A total of 81 children benefitted from the recent weekend dental programme at Rob Ferreira Hospital in Nelspruit.