In Kigali, Rwanda, the first pediatric surgery course

An important chapter has been written in the field of African health care. In Kigali, the capital of Rwanda in Africa,the largest training center in Surgery "IRCAD Africa" was inaugurated .

The inauguration of the IRCAD Africa center, located a few kilometers from the center of Kigali, was attended by the President of Rwanda and the Minister of Health of Rwanda. At the end of the inauguration, the first training course in Pediatric Surgery was held , organized by Ciro Esposito of the University of Naples Federico II and Aranaud Bonnard of Paris Descartes University.

The course, attended by more than 50 African pediatric surgeons from across the continent, lasted four days with more than 40 hours of theoretical and practical activities. Professor Esposito, organizer and director of the course, emphasizes the serious shortage of pediatric surgeons on the African continent, for example, in the city of Kigali alone with more than 2 million inhabitants there are only 3 pediatric surgeons. "It is our duty to help the people of Africa," Esposito continues, "and to train new generations of Pediatric Surgeons by teaching them new surgical technologies to best treat the millions of children in the country.

Professor Esposito explains that a collaboration agreement has been signed between IRCAD Africa and the non-profit Association Amici della Chirurgia Pediatrica Federico II that will allow many African surgeons to complete their surgical training at the Pediatric Surgery Unit of the Federico II University Hospital in 2025.

The IRCAD Africa Pediatric Surgery Course faculty team, consisting of Professors Maria Escolino and Louise Monatalva and Professors Ciro Esposito, Aranaud Bonnard, Miguel Guelfand, and Darius Patkowski, worked in the operating room alongside their African colleagues teaching them new minimally invasive surgical techniques. On this event, which was televised live throughout Rwanda, Rwandan President Paul Kagame emphasized that the creation of this hyper-technological training center will have a positive impact on the lives of millions of people in the country and especially for children. IRCAD Africa's Research Team together with pediatric surgeons from the University of Paris and the Federico II University, has designed a research project called "Disrumpere" that will revolutionize the management of medical and surgical conditions of African patients with the help of artificial intelligence which, among other things, will enable the establishment of connections and exchanges of medical information and carry out surgeries remotely and implement collaboration between IRCAD Africa and the Descartes University of Paris and the Federico II University.

"I'm proud of what we have accomplished," Esposito concludes, "and especially that we will have the opportunity in the coming months to continue to collaborate with African colleagues and to be able to help complete the training of young African pediatric surgeons at the Pediatric Surgery of the Federico University.