In a bid to elevate the standard of plastic and reconstructive surgery across Africa, Smile Train has announced a call for women to apply for full scholarships to pursue these specialized fields at the University of Nairobi. The initiative aims to address the gender imbalance in the profession and expand the availability of surgical care in resource-limited settings.
During the recent Annual Kenya Society of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons (KSPRAS) Conference held in Mombasa, Smile Train’s Education and Training Manager for Africa, Patrick Mwai, highlighted the urgent need for more female applicants. Currently, only three out of the sixteen scholars supported by Smile Train are women. Mwai emphasized that despite significant investments in training quality plastic surgeons throughout Africa, the representation of women in this field remains disproportionately low.
The conference, themed ‘Harmony and Diversity: Advancing Aesthetic and Reconstructive Surgery across Africa,’ brought together leading surgeons from across the continent to discuss strategies for enhancing surgical interventions and building resilient health systems. Mwai underscored that while Smile Train’s focus is on improving cleft surgical outcomes, the broader goal of their collaboration with the University of Nairobi is to reduce the risk of mortality and permanent disability associated with inadequate surgical care.
Reconstructive surgery, according to Mwai, is vital in improving the quality of life for patients, enhancing their psychological well-being, and facilitating social reintegration. Despite these benefits, there remains a shortage of female plastic surgeons to meet the needs of women and children, who constitute a significant portion of the population requiring such services.
Professor Ferdinand Nangole, Thematic Head of the Department of Plastic Surgery at the University of Nairobi, noted that the KSPRAS Conference serves as a platform for knowledge exchange and encourages discourse on strengthening local surgical networks. He expressed hope that the conference would inspire more surgeons, particularly women, to join the field and contribute to improving surgical capacity in Africa.
The Lancet Commission’s research reveals a stark global disparity, with five billion people lacking access to safe, affordable surgical and anesthesia care. Surgical conditions account for 35 percent of the global burden of disease, highlighting the critical need for expanded surgical services. Smile Train’s scholarship program, established in collaboration with the University of Nairobi since 2021, aims to address this gap by supporting resident doctors in plastic and reconstructive surgery. The program annually invests Sh 20,908,287 to fund two Kenyan scholars and two international residents from countries such as Ghana, Sierra Leone, Cameroon, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, and Uganda.
In addition to scholarships, Smile Train has also supported the upgrade of the Microsurgery Unit, provided essential surgical equipment, and facilitated research grants and innovative training through Simulare Medical simulation workshops. These efforts are designed to boost the confidence of surgeons and enhance the quality of cleft surgery outcomes.
In 2023, Smile Train’s initiatives led to over 100 patients with clefts receiving free surgery across Kenya, with plans to extend these services to up to 200 patients through outreach programs in the upcoming year. Celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2024, Smile Train has transformed the lives of nearly 2 million beneficiaries globally. Since 2002, the organization has partnered with more than 700 local hospitals and over 300 medical professionals in 38 Sub-Saharan countries, providing over 170,000 free cleft treatments.
The call for more women to apply for these scholarships is a crucial step towards bridging the gender gap in plastic surgery and enhancing the quality and accessibility of surgical care across the continent.
