Category Archives: Vietnam

Our fall Vietnam mission is complete. With the support of our mission partner IPSAC and the Provincial Hospital leadership and surgical, medical and nursing staff, we were able to successfully perform 24 urologic procedures on children in need. In addition to these surgeries, knowledge was transferred at all points in the continuum of care – from the bedside to the conference room. We collaborated to do screenings, provide pre- and post-op care and family education and, of course, hands-on training in the OR. On our last day, we did a workshop on optimizing surgical outcomes with a multidisciplinary approach. It ended with a good discussion illustrating the differences between our healthcare settings and the impact resources have on patients and teams. We were also supported by a very committed and helpful team of interpreters all along the way.

The children and families we encountered this week were absolutely amazing. It was especially touching to see how children and families supported one another, even though they may not have known one another prior to coming to us for surgical care. One father helped a pregnant mother by carrying her child for her. They supported one another with encouraging words and friendly smiles. They worked together like one big family, challenged while being far from home and stressed by the prospect of their children needing surgery, but all on a similar journey.

Even the children offered encouragement to each other. Our last case of the day on Thursday was the special little boy pictured in the photo. Because eating and drinking prior to surgery isn’t allowed, the other children waiting for their procedures were hungry and thirsty. He helped to calm and distract them by blowing bubbles, offering them toys and playing with them, all with a huge smile.

After leaving Thanh Hoa, most of the CSI team spent an additional day in Hanoi where we visited Blossom House, a foster home for girls aged 5-18 years run by Humanitarian Services for Children of Vietnam. HSCV is a non-profit organization founded by Minnesotans Chuck DeVet and his daughter Annetta. The home provides holistic care for girls from families living in extreme poverty. Learn more about HSCV at www.hscv.org. Our friends at HSCV provided us with critical logistical support and translation services for our medical mission in Thanh Hoa, so we were grateful to be able to, in turn, provide support and information to the girls at Blossom House.

Our team offered a workshop for the girls titled “Take Care of that Temple,” with a focus on positive self-image and self-care. The girls really enjoyed writing positive messages about themselves and their peers. We also discussed and demonstrated the importance of hand hygiene, which was identified as a strong need and was well-received. We hope to continue to partner with HSCV and visit Blossom House on return missions to the region.

Thanks to Dollies Making A Difference, we were able to leave some sweet hand-made dolls with the girls. The girls so appreciated the gifts.

It has been a very, very busy few days for our Vietnam team and local partners! 51 children were evaluated by our surgical, medical and nursing teams during screening. 25 of those children will have surgery this week. Because of the continuity that we are able to provide with return missions, many of these children are returning for planned surgical follow up.

Today was eventful, and ran smoothly thanks to an incredibly flexible team. Our second CSI urologist, Dr. Alonso Carrasco, arrived this morning. Several surgical cases were completed. The most complicated of the day was a 7 month old infant girl who required a partial kidney removal and surgical repair of the ureter. She came through the procedure like a champ! We are grateful for the many opportunities for education and collaboration.

Tonight we attended a hospital celebration of the mid autumn festival (children’s new year). We were asked to do something special for the hundreds of children and parents who attended. CSI volunteer, Leon Randall accepted the challenge to lead our team in a performance. Our rendition of the classic “Heads, shoulders, knees and toes” was a huge hit! The crowd joined in and we had a blast. What a special time to be here working with our partners for the children of Vietnam.

Screening day is complete and the surgery schedule is full for the week! This is the time to meet prospective children for evaluation, review medical records, and assess the children’s current health status and readiness for surgery. As the photos show, the CSI team is partnering with IPSAC and local Vietnamese surgical and medical staff to make the most of our time onsite.

The surgical focus for the week is urological, with an educational focus on evaluating and implementing ways to improve surgical outcomes with a multidisciplinary approach.

The children couldn’t be sweeter, and proud families anxiously await life-changing surgeries. More later…..

After extensive travels, including 4 airports and a very long bus ride, CSI’s team of volunteer surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurse anesthetists, pediatric nurses and support staff have made it safely to Thanh Hoa, Vietnam!
We were welcomed with open arms by friends both old and new. We are fired up and ready to work this week for these beautiful kiddos on the other side of the world. Keep watch for news to come – screening day is tomorrow. Now for some much needed sleep…..

The team has finished up the final day of surgeries. In our short time here, the CSI team performed 56 surgeries. This morning the surgeons made their final rounds and signed off to the local Urology and ENT Departments who will follow the children In the hospital for a few additional days, as is their typical protocol here.

A few CSI team members toured different areas of the hospital during the course of the week, including the NICU, pediatric ICU and the emergency department.

The CSI team has been honored to care for the families and children of the Thanh Hoa region this week. The children’s sweet smiles and the grateful eyes of the parents make the work a pleasure.

Adminstrators, surgeons, physicians and nurses from Thanh Hoa pediatric hospital invited the CSI team and our translators to a farewell gala to celebrate the week of collaborative work on behalf of the children. It was a festive night filled with friendship, laughter, toasting, speeches and, of course, Vietnamese karaoke!

Here’s a fine example of the karaoke, performed by Dr. David Vandersteen, urologist, left, and Leon Randall, biomedical support.

A special shout out goes to a very enthusiastic and dedicated team of translators who have been with us the entire week.

Today was spent visiting a floating river village and Trang An, a national heritage park. Three generations live on this floating home.

The team will disperse tomorrow. Some head home to the U.S. while others extend their stay to explore Vietnam and Thailand.

Jet lag, 12-hour workdays, exhaustion, and sometimes a rumbling stomach are “part of the deal” on a surgical mission. But what is so very wonderful is that every morning I wake up thinking about the kids we cared for yesterday, and remembering the smiles, the tears, the parents’ expressions of hope, worry, and ultimately gratitude. I can’t wait to get back to the hospital to see how the kids fared during the night. Did her labored breathing settle down, did he drink some fluids, did the bleeding stop, is her pain under control, did the parents get some rest?

The weather has been beautiful this week, sunny and 75 degrees. The morning walk to the hospital is filled with the sights and sounds of the city. Walking into the bustling Thanh Hoa Pediatric Hospital gives us renewed energy. It’s a large and very busy regional pediatric center, with 500 beds and currently about 800 patients.

Today, the rhythm and flow of the CSI surgical day in Thanh Hoa were nice. The team members are all settling into their roles, finding their way around their work areas and the rest of the hospital, and getting to know their Vietnamese colleagues better. We are becoming more efficient and synchronized every day.

The urology and ENT patients that are assigned to the CSI team stay with us in the Anesthesia Department for the first day and overnight. At that time they are transferred to their respective ENT and Urology Departments where they will be in the hospital for several more days.

The surgeons, anesthesia and OR nurses (CSI and Vietnamese) have two cases going simultaneously in each room. With two ENT and two Urology surgeons with us, we are performing cleft lip and palate repairs, as well as the repair of a variety of urological abnormalities.  Some of these can be quite complicated and may require additional procedures in the future.

Off to the last day of surgery. Stay tuned!

~ Linda Sedgwick

Tuesday, March 1 – A beautiful morning to start the day in Thanh Hoa. The teams are starting to hit their stride. We are seeing great collaboration and information sharing among our surgeons, pediatricians, anesthesiologists and nurses as they work a busy slate of urological and maxillofacial cases. The ENT team has been working through seven cases today, mostly cleft palates, and there has been an opportunity to work side-by-side sharing ideas and procedures with our Vietnam colleagues.

The urological team had a rare epispadias case this afternoon, something which our surgeons had only seen five times in their 50 years of combined experience. It’s estimated to occur at a rate of 1 in 250,000. We were well-equipped, and working with our Vietnamese colleagues, the repair procedure went very well. During the day, anesthesiologists shared techniques on airway management and regional blocks. Pre-op and post-op nurses worked together on procedures and kept the whole system operating smoothly. The days are long, wrapping up around 8 p.m., but there has been strong engagement and support across the teams.

By Tom Fansler, CSI Board Chairman

After a meeting with our partners at Thanh Hoa pediatric hospital, we began evaluating the many patients waiting to be seen by urology and ENT surgeons. Many patients and hopeful families had traveled long distances to see CSI.

Because we had a team here six months ago, we have the ability to see some children in follow-up who weren’t ready for surgery at that time. Returning after just six months also allows for more continuity in our education and training models, as well as streamlining and improving our processes with the hospital staff and administration.

It was a very busy but interesting and successful day. More than 100 children were evaluated for potential surgery. Some will be ready for surgery this week, while others may need further testing and diagnostic work. To a few families’ joyful surprise, their children had normal examinations and did not require a procedure.

While the children were being evaluated, our OR anesthesia and nursing teams spent the day setting up the operating rooms, assuring they had all the necessary equipment ready to provide safe and comprehensive pediatric surgical care, and meeting with their Vietnamese colleagues.

Our team is enthusiastic, resourceful, committed, hardworking and fun! CSI is thrilled to have a few nurses and physicians with us in Vietnam who are new to CSI. It really doesn’t take long for a group of passionate people to become a cohesive team. The children and families waiting for us here give us the energy and focus to give them our best.

As always, our focus is on education for local health professionals. We will be working alongside Thanh Hoa hospital surgeons, physicians, nurses and administrators every step of the way this week.

~Linda Sedgwick

Long travel days were the norm for the team traveling to Thanh Hoa. The journey included 28 hours+ flight times, an overnight in Hanoi and a bus ride to Thanh Hoa on Saturday. We enjoyed a welcome dinner with hospital physicians and administrators. Everyone is enthusiastic about getting started. Sunday will be spent screening children at the hospital in preparation for a full schedule of ENT and urology surgeries this week.

The CSI team in Vietnam includes 26 members from Minnesota, Virginia, California, North Dakota, Tennessee and Maryland.

A special thank you shout out to our guide Frederick, Father Joseph and our Vietnamese interpreters.

~Linda Sedgwick