In December (2025), Anthony Abbot Kamara (our in country lead) travelled back to Kono from medical school in Uganda*. He set to work carrying out collection of longer-term follow-up data on the Koidu Government Hospital’s Affordable Mesh Hernia Surgery Initiative* (AMHSI) patient cohort. He was able to contact most of the patients and the provisional results appear really excellent. We are in the process of collating that data with a view to preparing a manuscript for publication. There is very little in the literature about the long-term outcomes of interventions in LMICs and we see an important part of our role is to address this – both as an overall view and in each individual country workstream. It is important to publicise the quality of the patient outcomes which are being achieved. To validate the work, and encourage further uptake.
In January (2026), Lesley travelled back out again from the UK meeting up with Abbot in Sierra Leone. With the AMHSI progressing well, her focus this time was on another workstream – theoretical training on abdominal emergencies including an operative wet lab. Lesley has been a trailblazer in expanding the horizons of surgical training in Sierra Leone. Where the surgical workforce is slowly being rebuilt after the challenges they have faced*. Both courses were for medical doctors, and were well received. Subsequent correspondence has suggested that they want to build on this type of training – both in depth and also increasing access to the training for more people. SWIFTSS are hoping to support this exciting local initiative.
Lesley and Abbot also got the chance to operate together, reversing stomas on children who needed lifesaving ileostomies for complicated typhoid perforations 2 months earlier.
Fantastic work. Congratulations and many thanks to all involved.
(*click to find out more)