The ENT Charity

The Charity was initiated by the Webmaster of the Erbak.com web site, Dr Peter Erbak, specialist otorhinolaryngologist.

The purpose of the ENT Charity is to unite all the efforts directed at facilitating the work in the area of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck, Oral and Maxillofacial, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery in the city of Bulawayo, Zimbabwe.

The city of Bulawayo is the second largest city in Zimbabwe (after Harare, the capital) with around 1.000.000 inhabitants.

It has three major hospitals: Mpilo Central Hospital, UBH - United Bulawayo Hospitals, and Mater Dei Hospital, and several smaller facilities (Galen House, Lancet House, Medical Centre, Emergency Polyclinic) and numerous government and private clinics and surgeries. However, there are only three specialists OTOHNS, one maxillofacial but many general surgeons and general practitioners and general dentists also do various interventions in the region of the Head and Neck.

However, due to current economical difficulties, the existing equipment is in a very bad state and almost all specialized equipment is not functioning or badly malfunctioning.

For instance, direct laryngoscopy is not working at the Mpilo hospital. Paediatric laryngoscopy is barely functional. The number of forceps for various interventions in the larynx and trachea are reduced to 3-4. There is no drill as such. The otherwise excellent Wilde microscope is completely static, mainly suitable for neurosurgery, microsurgery etc and has only one bulb. ENT endoscopy has to be stopped at the UBH because of almost complete absence of all appropriate forceps.

The are no mini-plates with screws for open reduction and immobilization of fractured facial bones. There are no arch bars. So, all fractures have to be immobilized with stainless steel wire and even that is in very short supply.

All the headlights are in a very bad condition. All the small instruments are also missing (like for instance, Jobson-Horne probes, aligator forceps, etc). Audiometer and tympanometer (at the Mpilo Hospital) are very old and malfunctioning. Skin grafting equipment is very old and malfunctioning.

Even the ordinary tracheostomy and tonsillectomy sets are in very bad condition. Since numerous requests for renewal of equipment and purchase of new equipment were not successful I decided to take several steps to try to improve the condition.

Firstly, following on an idea proposed by my colleague Dr Peter Erbak, I decided to start an ENT Charity, which is going to coordinate all the efforts to alleviate this unfortunate situation.

Secondly, I will try to initiate and coordinate the efforts of the local Rotary clubs in establishing and fulfiling the projects dedicated to the same goal.

Thirdly, through this and another web-sites and other forms of communication an appeal is being made to the health professionals, especially colleagues in the field of OTOHNS, OMFS, PRS and others, to donate old and new but functioning instruments, textbooks and other materials, money etc, to this worthy cause.

A special foreign currency account will be opened dedicated specially to this charity.

Predrag M. Maksimovich
email: famona@email.com

Dr Maks and ENT Charity owe a large "THANK YOU" to the friend and colleague and specialist ear, nose and throat surgeon Peter Erbak for creation and hosting of the famona.erbak web site and a whole bunch of innovative and brilliant ideas!

This is our "wish list". Those seventeen instruments from six different rigid endoscopy sets, total worth of about 8821 euros, is what we need to re-start normal rigid endoscopies at the Mpilo Central Hospital here in Bulawayo

SigmaMax Publishing