Ethicon Travel Award winner 2021, Jonny Rust MRCOG, tells us about his experience
After receiving the Ethicon Travel Award, I had the privilege of spending six months at Kivulini Maternity Centre in Arusha, Tanzania as a specialist in O&G. I worked alongside a wonderful team that is incredibly skilled, knowledgeable and passionate about delivering excellent care to the women and families they serve.
Kivulini Maternity Centre is donation-funded and treats those living below a certain income level. It is both a maternity hospital (with an antenatal, postnatal, labour ward, outpatient obstetric clinic and reproductive and child health clinic) and an obstetric fistula repair centre that serves a vast region in Tanzania. The centre also conducts outreach work to locate women with this devastating birth injury. By providing the treatment free of charge they enable people who cannot usually access healthcare to receive the care they need.
It was such a privilege to work alongside these doctors. I particularly enjoyed mentoring junior staff in obstetric decision-making and surgical skills, as well as the opportunity to help with service provision as a first on call. I learnt a huge amount during this time, most notably that context is king with every decision you make, and I felt humbled meeting the people we cared for and hearing their stories.
I am really grateful to have been awarded the Ethicon Travel Award and to have had the chance to visit this wonderful country and make a contribution.
