Binta is a young, vibrant 30yr old woman living in Cote D’ivoire, West Africa. She is family to a dear friend of mine who now lives here in the states.

a few years ago, Binta fell ill with typhoid fever and experienced an intestinal rupture as a result of her illness. She had emergency life-saving surgery which left her with significant abdominal hernias.

Later, a doctor promising they could help unfortunately made things worse for Binta (both physically and financially) and now she is in great need of abdominal wall repair.

Myself, and many other fellow medical professionals who have spent significant time in West Africa, understand the extreme circumstances women like Binta face. Access to safe, high quality surgery is scarce and many often die from their lack of access.

Binta and her family have worked diligently to find a reputable doctor who is able to help her. His history and credentials are excellent, and he works at a highly rated hospital in Abidjan. The cost of surgery and recovery time in the hospital has been quoted at $7000. I will be able to make direct payment to the hospital for Binta’s surgery and recovery. Binta and her family have pulled together $500 themselves, a major feat in their area of the world.

the goal of $8000 will cover the hospital care and any unforeseen issues that may arise.

Mark Shrime, a physician and researcher who serves with Mercy Ships for years has done extensive research on lack of surgical care in West Africa.

“an assessment of operating theatre density showed that 90% of the population of sub-Saharan Africa has access to roughly one operating theatre per 100 000 people. The few theatres that do exist have limited capacity to provide safe surgical care. For instance, up to 70% lack pulse oximetry, an anaesthetic monitoring standard. Even when adequate surgical capacity and robust safety mechanisms exist, patients in both high-income and low-income settings often confront other barriers to access. A fully equipped operating theatre serves little purpose for patients who cannot reach the hospital in a timely fashion, or for whom a surgical team is unavailable. Finally, patients who do receive appropriate surgical care often risk impoverishment secondary to out-of-pocket payments.”

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214109X15701154?via%3Dihub

The need is great, and we hope very much to be able to celebrate a successful outcome for Binta.

the photos below are sensitive, but show the state she is in currently.

thank you for your donation on behalf of Binta, and her family near and far❤️

Above- Binta and her mother in their home.

below: Binta