La Chaîne de l’Espoir’s itinerant missions in Benin

The pediatric surgery itinerant missions organized by La Chaine de l’Espoir have existed in Benin since 2018 at a rate of 2 annual missions. They are led by teams from Cotonou’s CNHU and CHU Mère Enfant Lagune (CHUMEL) under the supervision of Prs Fiogbe and Gbenou, heads of the pediatric surgery departments, and supported by volunteer pediatric anesthetists from La Chaine de l’Espoir’s medical network.

For both missions, teams from Grenoble University Hospital will be working alongside the Beninese teams. For the mission from June 5 to 11, Dr. Jean Noel Evain, pediatric anesthetist, will be accompanied by Marielle Picard, pediatric nurse anesthetist, on her 1st mission with Chaîne de l’Espoir. And from July 3 to 9, Drs Chantal Chazelet and Cloé Morel, also on their 1st mission, will be accompanied by Claire Gigault de Crisenoy, pediatric nurse anesthetist.

The missions will take place in the area hospitals of Adjohoun, a commune of 90,000 inhabitants located 70 km from Cotonou in the Ouémé department, and Bassila, a commune in Donga in central Benin, 370 km from Cotonou.

In Benin, paediatric surgical and anaesthetic expertise is based in Cotonou. It is difficult for the families of children living in remote areas to access specific care. That’s why these missions take place in district/area hospitals, giving children in Benin’s provinces access to appropriate surgical care.

Each mission, announced in advance on local community radio stations, is impressive in terms of the number of consultations and operations carried out: the teams take turns in 3 to 4 consultation rooms and operating tables, depending on the rooms and equipment available, to receive all surgical cases and perform between 100 and 150 operations on children suffering from cleft lip and palate, hydroceles, hernias, burns, fractures, bone diseases…

These itinerant missions are part of La Chaîne de l’Espoir’s support program for the Diplôme d’Enseignement Supérieur in pediatric surgery – part of the doctors’ training curriculum for their specialization. Students and young doctors from Benin will accompany the teams.

Since 2018, La Chaîne de l’Espoir has been developing a program to support the strengthening of pediatric general surgery during traveling missions and in Cotonou’s 2 university hospitals, where it brings its expertise to the teams, particularly in the fields of urology and reconstructive surgery for burn victims.

La Chaîne de l’Espoir is an international NGO founded in 1994 and present in nearly 30 countries. Its mission is to strengthen healthcare systems to give everyone, especially children, the same chances of survival and development.