Birmingham Surgeon Returns From Another Mission to Kenya

Birmingham residents Dr. Mehul Mehta and wife, Claire, recently returned from another mission to Kenya where they and two dozen doctors and medical specialists performed life-changing surgeries. 

Mehta and members of the International Surgical Mission Support Michigan (ISMS-Michigan) group traveled to Kakamega — which is in Kenya's second largest county just about 30 kilometers north of the equator — last month as part of their second mission to the country. Within six days, they performed 45 surgeries including cleft lip repairs, burn treatments, hernia repairs hand surgeries and the removal of tumors.

They also brought with them 61 crates of supplies and left behind roughly $25,000 worth of supplies at hospitals and off-site clinics they visited. The mission was sponsored by funds raised from local businesses and charities, including Map International, Americares and World Medical Relief, and private donors. Many are the same supporters that help the Mehtas organize and participate in an 8-day mission to Kenya in 2011.

The patients were mostly children, including a 6-year-old boy who suffered severe burns to his back when he was pushed into a bon fire, according to the mission's blog on the ISMS website. Mehta performed skin grafts on the majority of the boy's back and the patient was discharged from the hospital earlier this month, the blog states. 

Mehta and colleague Dr. Matthew Rontal, of West Bloomfield, operated under sometimes difficult conditions at the Kakamega Provicial General Hospital, including rolling blackouts that required them to use flashlights, a news release stated.

“It was a truly amazing experience,” said Rontal, a facial and craniofacial reconstructive surgeon, in a news release. “It was a great challenge with a great sense of satisfaction. The patients were very grateful—if a person gets sick there and have no resources, they might not get the help they need.”

The Methas are currently fund-raising and planning another mission next year. or more information about the ISMS or to donate to the Michigan team, visit ISMission.org.