How Eschmann is supporting Hernia International in West Africa

How Eschmann is supporting Hernia International in West Africa

Hernia International supports patients with the condition in 23 countries, across five continents. It is led by their Director, Professor Andrew Kingsnorth FRCS.

Professor Kingsnorth intends to develop care for patients with hernias in Liberia and aims to do so with the help of a Little Sister SES 3000B Vacuum Autoclave from Eschmann. He spoke about its use so far, and his hopes for the future:

“When treating a hernia repair, you typically use a small polymer mesh, made of polyethylene. Commercial mesh is, however, expensive.

“An expat British surgeon reported using mosquito netting at a course I led in India some years ago. This was of extreme interest. I found out that a group of surgeons had been using a particular mesh that is used in significant quantities for mosquitos.

“After more studies, we found it could be suitable as a cost-effective but positive solution, with small recurrence rates. The thing is, this mesh needed to be prepared in the UK, including autoclave treatment, for quite some time.”

Overcoming international challenges

The Little Sister SES 3000B Vacuum Autoclave is a leading solution for many healthcare professionals. It has a 17-litre chamber, and offers both ‘B’ and ‘N’ type cycles to accommodate a variety of instrument and load types.

Hernia International’s Little Sister SES 3000B is currently in an office in England. It will join a team of dedicated clinicians in Liberia looking to support hundreds and thousands of at-risk patients.

This ambition is not without complication. Professor Kingsnorth went on to explain:

“Developing care in Liberia requires expensive machinery, training of professionals, and government approval. You can’t use a foreign body in healthcare unless it’s licenced with the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

“The Little Sister Autoclave is key to our work. The support from the Eschmann team has been absolutely fantastic. Andy Hill (Regional Commercial Manager) always responds to any queries quickly and will pass us through to another member of the team if required.

“Another member of the team, Paul Godfrey (Senior Field Technical Support Engineer), came to our UK office with the autoclave so I could sterilise mesh prior to distribution. He gave me a two-hour tutorial, before signing me off as a qualified autoclave user.

“When it comes to shipping the autoclave out to Liberia, Andy will send out the right packaging and Paul will come along to help me pack it away for safe transport. It’s all very helpful to ensure the autoclave is in good working condition.

“They’ve been a really good team to work with.”

Support with Eschmann

The Eschmann team pride themselves on providing expert support with industry-leading solutions in healthcare. To find out more about how Eschmann can work with you to optimise your workflows, contact the team today.

Hernia International provide support for clinicians wanting to volunteer their expertise across the world, visit www.herniainternational.org.uk to learn more.

To discover our latest range of Little Sister autoclaves, click here.