Clifford Wheeless, Dr. Marcy Roenneburg, Dr. Rene Genadry, Dr.Michael Brodman, Dr. Leon Lewenstein, Dr. Cynthia Gyamfy, Dr. Kristin Keefe and Nurse Luny LeBrun worked with our permanent Nigerien medical staff at the National Hospital. Dr. Ralph Chesson, Dr. Margie Kahn, Dr. Bruce Crawford and Dr. Marsha Guess operated with Dr. Sanda Ganda at Lamorde Hospital. Between the 2 teams, 72 surgeries were performed during a period of 3 weeks.
IOWD has begun a supplementary food program that provides fresh milk and yogurt to all the patients who have been operated on. This program has been funded by a generous donation by the EILEEN FISHER CLOTHING COMPANY.
Nigerien President Tandja invited IOWD’s Medical Director, Dr. Clifford Wheeless, Advisory Board Member, Dr. Michael Brodman and IOWD’s Director, Ira Margolies, to a meeting to discuss the fistula program. President Tandja openly stated his support of our program – and offered to provide anything we might need to make this project successful. The meeting was nationally televised.
To our great delight, the First lady, Madam Laraba Tandja and Madam Zeinabou Hama, the Prime Minister’s wife, made a surprise visit to the National Hospital. The women, and a huge entourage of people, accompanied our doctors through the wards to visit each and every one of our patients! At a meeting, following the visit to the wards, Madam Tandja and Madam Hama spoke in front of a large group of people and the television cameras. Both women graciously commended our doctors, as well as the Nigerien staff, for their work with the fistula women. And both women pledged their continued support for IOWD’s fistula program.