Medical Partnerships
Delivering Support
New DAWN Africa develops strategic partnerships in order to address key challenges in the Dandora community. Medical and surgical partnerships augment the ongoing daily work of the Brother Andre staff. Our partners provide specialized services to Dandora patients while simultaneously providing mentorship, skills training and educational development to Brother Andre staff.
Partner Highlight: Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles - November 2019 Gynecologic Surgery
We established a gynecologic surgery partnership with Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles in 2019. Dr. Ewina Fung and Dr. Christy Evans, Ob/Gyn, assisted by the Brother Andre staff, performed Brother Andre Hospital’s very first gynecologic surgeries. Patients pre-screened by BAH staff and identified as potential candidates for surgery had suffered symptoms such as chronic abdominal pain, heavy bleeding, and infertility. Without intervention, they’d likely never find relief. Over the course of our surgical visit, they performed gynecologic surgeries including hysterectomy, (removal of the uterus), ovarian cystectomy (removal a large cyst from one of the ovaries), and myomectomy (removal of fibroids from the uterus).
Fibroids are benign tumors in the uterus. Up to 80% of women will develop fibroids in their lifetime, however, the vast majority do not produce any symptoms or problems. In certain cases, however, these fibroids develop to be quite large, which causes pain and other symptoms such as constipation, abdominal pain, or back pain. Heavy bleeding, anemia, and trouble getting pregnant are other possible symptoms. Without sufficient insurance to pay for surgery, women in Dandora are forced to suffer with very little option or relief.
New DAWN Africa is looking to develop strong partnerships with healthcare professionals who can share their expertise and best practices with the Dandora community. Areas in which we are seeking to collaborate include: Gynecology, Dentistry, Ophthalmology, Pediatrics, etc.