Grant recipients Robert and Andrea Parker are surgeons who have been serving at TenWek Hospital in rural Kenya for nearly 10 years. They are an inspiring example of how Western healthcare missionaries impact patients, hospitals, communities, countries, and even entire continents not only through their faith-focused medical care but also through the training they provide to nationals and the curriculum they develop.
2023 American College of Surgeons/Pfizer Academic Global Surgeon Award
This October, the Parkers were jointly awarded the 2023 American College of Surgeons/Pfizer Academic Global Surgeon Award for their service educating surgical trainees in a medically under-resourced country.
The Academic Global Surgeon Award is given to surgeons who are active in academic global surgical practice in regions of inequities, the Parkers tell us. Academic surgery involves using research, training, and evidence-based advocacy to make significant contributions to surgical education and care.
The ACS says the Parkers were chosen in appreciation of their work to improve training quality, alleviate the burden on faculty, and satisfy medical oversight boards in sub-Saharan Africa.
“Andrea led a project to create a context-specific modular curriculum, helping to design, implement, and distribute the content, in addition to primarily authoring much of the material. Robert has been an active participant in this endeavor, authoring multiple chapters in the online curriculum and also growing the region’s research capacity,” says the ACS.
In addition to building a workforce, Drs. Parker supported physical infrastructure to enable education, including the acquisition of laparoscopic equipment, new operating room lights and tables, and surgical instruments and retractors. They also have advocated around the world on the importance of academic surgery education, the ACS reports.
Thanks to MedSend Donors
“We are grateful for this opportunity and are reminded, once again, that we cannot do this work without all of you. We are humbled by this award, knowing that we are part of an incredible group of people working together to love and serve Jesus and others through this work,” the Parkers share.
According to the Parkers’ research, it costs about $125,000 to train a surgeon in Kenya compared to nearly $1 million in the US. Over their professional career, a surgeon in Kenya will perform 10-15,000 operations and see another 100,000 patients in consultation. Each national that the Parkers train results in an exponential ripple effect outward. Add to that the curriculum the Parkers have developed that is used throughout Africa, and that ripple becomes a wave.
“Without MedSend, this hope would not be possible.”
The Parkers try to spend very little time in the States for furlough so that they can continue training nationals without significant disruptions. “Without MedSend, this hope would not be possible,” they emphasize. “MedSend is vital to our ability to do what God has called us to do in missions. God has allowed us incredible opportunities and given us tremendous gifts to use for serving, mentoring, and training others through education. We remain grateful for your partnership that allows us to take advantage of these opportunities.”
MedSend’s innovative solutions in advancing healthcare missions are paving new pathways to health and hope, but we need you. With your financial support, you’ll empower healthcare professionals and spread love globally. Your support is a step towards a world healed and loved.
