CASE STUDIES

Supporting orthopaedics and the delivery of trauma care

Dr. Elizabeth Tissingh, the Clinical Lead for King’s Global Health Partnerships in the DRC, worked as a volunteer in the Trauma Department and Orthopaedics at the Hôpital Provincial de Référence de Kinkanda, Matadi   for one year (2016-2017). During this time she supported the establishment of a teaching programme for the department; a weekly Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) meeting for all complex trauma cases; the development of a clinical protocol for the management of open fractures, improvement in office layout; and installation of hand-washing facilities for the ward.

Safe Surgery Saves Lives

In 2018, the WHO Safe Surgery Saves Lives programme was introduced by KGHP volunteers with a senior stakeholder workshop in Matadi. The multidisciplinary surgical team from the following hospitals took part in a two-day practical workshop:

• Hôpital Général Boma in Boma
• Hôpital St Luc in Kisantu
• Hôpital IME in Kimpese
• Hôpital Provincial de Référence Kinkanda  in Matadi

The training focused on the nine key areas of the WHO Safe Surgery programme, including the introduction of the WHO safe surgery checklist, infection prevention and control (IPC), good team working and quality improvement (QI) methodology. The training was cascaded down to the four sites over the subsequent 12 months culminating in 2-day in depth workshops at the four sites in February 2020. The project implementation group continues to meet regularly.

This work has been funded by the HOPE Foundation and the African Grants Programme (THET and Johnson and Johnson).