A Bolivian nursing student needed highly-specialized brain surgery unavailable in the public healthcare system in his country. Read about his international journey to care and healing.
Read More“Successful surgical training is not dependent on the equipment, the finances, or even the planning as much as on the dedication of the people and their motivations for being here.”
Read MoreFrom virtual lectures to hands-on practice, our two day Spinal Surgery Workshop gave more than 25 neurosurgical residents from Bolivia and Paraguay an opportunity to advance their skills.
Read MoreA decade ago, there was very little access to endoscopic pituitary surgery in Bolivia, regardless of a patient’s economic status. Today, access to these procedures has grown and expanded across the country.
Read MorePatients suffering strokes and aneurysms in Paraguay may wait months or years for treatment due to a lack of essential but highly specialized endovascular supplies. A generous donation by Stryker delivered during our June mission trip to Asunción is helping make neuro-endovascular care accessible for many such patients.
Read MoreEach day of the Neurology and Neurosurgery Institute mission trip on epilepsy care brings new reminders of the complexity of neurological disorders. Working in collaboration among a team of specialists improves chances for accurate diagnoses and successful treatments.
This week in Bolivia, we are celebrating a major achievement: the first-ever epilepsy surgery performed in the public children’s hospital of Santa Cruz!
Read MoreEpilepsy is one of the most common neurological diseases, but three-quarters of people living with epilepsy in low-income countries do not get the treatment they need. Our Neurosurgery and Neurology Institute (NNI) is partnering with colleagues at the public Children’s Hospital in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, to bridge this gap.
Read MoreOver 60 residents, students, and early-career doctors in Bolivia and Paraguay are participating in a UW-Madison virtual neurosurgery residency program facilitated by the NNI.
Read MoreAnyone who has witnessed the devastating impact of a traumatic brain injury knows that an integrated approach is needed to care for patients and support their reintegration into society. On a November NNI trip to Hospital Santa Bárbara in Sucre, Bolivia, we expanded our focus to the entire spectrum of care for TBIs.
Read MoreIn Bolivia’s public hospitals, head trauma from traffic accidents, falls, or violence represents a pressing healthcare burden. Head and spine injuries not only affect the long-term quality of life of the injured patient but of entire families and communities.
Read MoreMany trainees in developing countries don’t have access to a practice space for advanced techniques. This drives motivated doctors to move abroad for their educational advancement and contributes to a drain on the medical workforce in low-income countries.
Read MoreThe three patients treated during our trip had experienced sudden and severe headaches and nausea, caused by a high-grade AVM. The complexity of their cases pushed the limits of surgical treatment available in Paraguay. But the doctors at the Hospital Nacional de Itaguá were motivated and eager to advance their skills in this type of care.
Read MoreToday is our third day at the Hospital Nacional de Itauguá, our second day of surgery. As we gathered in the faculty lounge, the surgeons seemed somewhat anxious. Yesterday’s surgery was successful, but today’s case will be much more difficult.
Read MoreOn our fourth medical mission trip to the Hospital Nacional de Itauguá in Asunción, Paraguay our Neurosurgery & Neurology insitute team will work with their counterparts to advance AVM surgeries.
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