Thank you to Meyada for taking a suitcase to Sudan, it sounds like she had a very meaningful experience 🙂 [NJT Toronto]
“I had a wonderful time in Sudan. Aside from visiting family and friends as we always do when we are back home, it was my first time visiting the Gazira Orthopaedic Centre. This centre is located in Wad-Madani, a large city approximately 3 hours southeast of Sudan’s capital, Khartoum.
The Gazira Orthopaedic Centre is more like a large hospital specializing in emergency services. It has approximately 32 physicians and several departments (Emergency, Inpatient care, Surgery/ OR, Laboratory, Pharmacy). Other government-funded hospitals in Wad-Madani specialize in different areas (e.g. kidney disease, paediatrics).
During my visit, I met with the Medical Manager, Dr. Isam (pictured with me). He very kindly welcomed me into the hospital and greatly appreciated the donation made by Not Just Tourists. He said they can make use of all the items in the suitcase. Being an emergency/ orthopedic centre, items like bandages, gauze, antiseptics, alcohol swabs, needles/syringes, masks etc. need to always be available. However he mentioned that there is greater need for hospital equipment such as:
– vitals monitors for blood pressure, pulse, temperature etc. (unfortunately there is only one monitor in the entire ER department. He stated the hospital has a need for at least 4)
– suction machines
– central lines
– defibrillator shock machines
– ECG machines
– airway management sets (intubation sets, ambu bags etc.)
He hopes that there will be future partnerships with NJT in which these supplies could, if possible, be donated.
Overall, my experience was a very positive and successful one. This opportunity helped me learn things I never knew before about healthcare in Sudan despite my multiple visits there over the years. I would definitely carry a suitcase again and my family members here in Canada aim to do the same in future visits. The main reason I decided to carry a suitcase in the first place was that I knew there would be a need in Sudan and because in the past, I carried school supplies donated by community members here in Canada for rural schools in Sudan and it was an extremely rewarding experience for me personally. This experience was no different and I am so thankful for it.
Thank you and Collette and all of NJT for making it easy for me to give back to Sudan and make a small but necessary impact.
I hope to work with you again in the near future 🙂
All the best,
Meyada”
