A team of 30 from South Korea joined us at our base and two hovercraft were used to enable the medical teams to access remote villages.
The Mad Medical Safari is already making a real difference. One patient arrived after breaking his leg two weeks earlier; gangrene had set in and without the swift intervention of the doctors the man would have died. It was necessary to amputate the leg, something which simply could not be done without skilled medical care.
One of the most important features of the Mad medical Safari is that it is a regular service, and so in this case follow up care has taken place. Dr Jonathan Lee of AIM has sourced an artificial limb which will be fitted shortly.
Several of the doctors involved in this latest trip have worked in countries such as Rwanda and Burundi. Despite their experiences in those regions where poverty is often structural and due to complex political situations, they felt they hadn’t witnessed the kind of brute raw poverty they saw in the dry south of Madagascar. Chronic malnutrition levels are amongst the worst in the world, and poor diet makes many vulnerable to disease.
In addition to expat doctors a growing number of Malagasy medics are expressing interest in the Mad Medical Safari, and we hope to see this continue as the programme moves forwards over the coming months.
(Photos by AIM)
