In 2016 a group of doctors launched an initiative to ‘give back’ by performing 1 free surgery a week… since then, the charity drive has expanded, and Operation Healing Hands is about to perform its 500th surgery free of charge!
Pretoria, South Africa (27 August 2021) – Today, Operation Healing Hands is performing its 500th pro-bono surgery, lip reconstruction for Lesedi Mtungwa!
Operation Healing Hands (NPC) aims to relieve the overwhelmed South African healthcare system by providing private healthcare to those most in need. Patients who need once-off surgery (such as hip or knee replacements) to resume normal lives but can’t afford private care and are on mile-long waiting lists at government facilities are helped by our organisation.
In 2016 a group of registered doctors in the private sector decided to launch a Mandela day initiative to honour the legacy of former president Nelson Mandela. The hope was that this small gesture would change the lives of a few people who primarily depend on the heavily burdened South African state hospitals for relief.
Since 2016, this initial one-week charity drive has expanded into a full-blown non-profit company.
OHH recruits hospitals, surgeons, anaesthetists and paramedics to provide free surgery and post-operative care. OHH also takes care of all the other arrangements and payments of extra expenses.
This is made possible with the help of amazing sponsors and service providers, without which OHH would not be able to help as many patients as they do.
The main objective of OHH has always been to improve the lives of as many patients as possible by providing life-changing surgery, be it big or small.
The rapid growth in patients helped over the last few years is a testimony to OHH’s commitment to this much-needed cause, and by continuing their work, many South African’s lives have been changed for the better.
Over the years, OHH has accumulated lots of success stories that truly warms the heart.
“One such story is that of Mirriam Ramasimong, an employee at LIFE Eugene Marais Hospital, who needed arthroplasty but couldn’t afford it. The doctors noticed her plight she worked with, and so she became OHH’s first-ever patient.
Another success story is that of Judith Xaba, a mother of seven, who can once again provide for her family since she is now able to do her job pain-free after her orthopaedic procedure.
A farmworker, Kapok Mofokeng, is able to see the farm he loves so much again after undergoing cataract surgery. After his surgery, Koos Moolman is again filled with hope, and Kerry McNamara, after 20 years of suffering from rheumatoid arthritis, can finally realise her dreams of becoming a chef.”
Add to this the stories of many children protected from future complications through medical circumcisions, tonsillectomies, adenoidectomies and other procedures, and the ripple effect of OHH’s good work becomes immeasurable.
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