The mission to Mandya, which is a town in the south Indian state of Karnataka, commenced in June 2014. It was a five day mission based in Mandya base hospital. The group consisted of doctors largely from the United States of America and from Australia. Mandya hospital had 2 operating theatres. Resources were scarce and we were fortunate to be able to provide a laparoscopic tower for the duration of our time there. Surgeons on the mission performed the first laparoscopic procedure in the hospital. Numerous operations were performed including laparoscopic cholecystectomies, appendectomies, hernia repairs and also many open procedures. Approximately 60 operations were performed during the mission.
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Both the overseas doctors and the local specialists were grateful for the assistance received from each other. The non-surgical team and the humanitarian volunteers travelled to local villages around Mandya. They observed how the primary health services and the Anganwadi, which is equivalent to the early childhood learning programs, were administered. Meals were provided on site to the children as this was considered an incentive for poorer families to send their children to such centers. A number of schools in the area were visited and education provided with regards to hygiene and health care. Books were distributed to children at a local school. Overall from a personal and humanitarian perspective, all the volunteers felt very satisfied that the objectives of the mission had been met.
