Mending Kids Brings Google Glass To Africa
Mending Kids Promotes and Sponsors Sustainable Pediatric Surgical Programs in Africa
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 3, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Renowned Los Angeles–based pediatric surgeons Dr. Philip K. Frykman, Dr. Marc Levitt, and Dr. Alp Numanoglu, along with the Red Cross Children's Hospital team, participated in the Biennial Congress of the South African Pediatric Association in Cape Town. Mending Kids, a non-profit based in Los Angeles for which several of the doctors volunteer their pediatric surgical skills, was the sponsor via its grant program that promotes sustainable pediatric surgical care. At this conference, the specialists were responsible for training 18 surgeons from nine African countries, and teaching them how to find and work with the proper equipment at a price they can actually afford. Dr. Frykman spoke about "out of the box" ways to solve problems with limited resources.
Dr. Frykman, along with Dr. Keith Kimble, invented a low-cost muscle stimulator for anorectal malformations repair that is currently in commercial production. He used Google Glass to record the precise placement. He explains, "Google Glass plays an integral role in the ongoing training efforts to achieve results." Dr. Frykman went on to say, "I am interested in helping the undeveloped world. That's what this conference was about, a discussion about innovative, low-cost solutions to medical problems." In addition to new knowledge, the 18 surgeons received stimulators gratis, donated by Mending Kids, which furnished the grant to develop the instrument.
It is one of Dr. Frykman's ambitions to provide quality, affordable surgical devices and education to pediatric surgeons in the developing world, for which he established the Global Pediatric Surgical Technology and Education Project (GP STEP), a California-based non-profit.
Dr. Frykman also used Google Glass to record his operating room techniques. The footage will serve as training videos for the participating doctors to take back to their respective countries and health centers to "pay it forward" and train even more of their colleagues. This is the first time Google Glass has been used to record pediatric surgeries for training videos in Africa and the first time it was used on surgical missions, demonstrating more vital uses for the new technology.
For his surgical volunteerism and the contributions he has made to pediatric medicine, Dr. Frykman is being honored with the Hope Award at Mending Kids' annual gala, November 8, 2014, in Santa Monica, along with Cedars-Sinai colleagues Dr. Keith Kimble and Janet Kimble, R.N. The award will be bestowed by longtime Mending Kids supporter Mel Gibson. Greg Booth, a business development executive at Google and a Mending Kids Board member, is also being honored, receiving the Love Award.
About Mending Kids (www.mendingkids.org):
Founded in 2006, Mending Kids International, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, has provided thousands of free life-changing surgeries to children from 54 countries, including the United States. Mending Kids deploys renowned surgical teams on missions to developing countries, and brings children to Los Angeles, where they live with volunteer Host Families during advanced surgical care and recuperation. Mending Kids' missions focus on providing pediatric surgical training to help local doctors build long-term sustainable surgical programs. Funding comes from donations and special events; 90% of every dollar goes to the surgical treatment of the children.
About Dr. Philip K. Frykman
Philip K. Frykman, MD, PhD, MBA is the Associate Director of Pediatric Surgery and Associate Professor of Surgery and Biomedical Sciences at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Dr. Frykman specializes in minimally invasive surgery for infants and children and has a specific focus on caring for children with Hirschsprung disease (HD) and anorectal malformations (ARM). Dr. Frykman has served with Mending Kids on numerous pediatric surgical missions, where his team has focused on repairing ARMs of orphaned and abandoned children, while partnering with local surgeons to improve knowledge and skill set in management of these children.
Media Contact: Jo-Ann Geffen, JAGPR, 818.905.5511, [email protected]
Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20141031/155865
SOURCE Mending Kids
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