If you develop appendicitis in the United States, chances are high that you’ll receive a top-notch appendectomy at a local hospital and be on your feet in 12 hours. But if you live in rural Uganda, “you will die,” says Dr. Michael Marin, chairman of the department of surgery at New York City’s Mount Sinai Medical Center. “Simple surgical interventions are life-altering or life-ending.” Roughly 5 billion people—two-thirds of the world—do not have access to safe and affordable surgery, causing 19 million deaths per year. AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria combined result in far fewer—3.5 million—and yet, as Marin laments, most philanthropic investments are not made in surgery.
Renowned for revolutionizing vascular surgery, Marin has also dedicated his career to championing global surgical health and to delivering surgical care to underserved parts of the world. Surgery is commonly believed to be expensive and complicated, requiring special equipment and the skills of a genius. “So we’ve set out on a pathway to see if we can dissuade people from that belief,” he says.
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