Newsletter 2024
Read our latest 2024 newsletter – PDF format.
This year has been a very successful one for Future Faces. We have embarked on our major new training programme with surgeons from Tanzania and worked with other charities to promote and develop our aims and objectives. We have also realised our ambition for the Craniofacial Centre in Nepal to fly on its own after seven years of hard work in that very deprived part of the world. Fundraising is always a major burden, but we have been very fortunate to have received some significant donations from some wonderful people to whom we are immensely grateful.
Tanzania
In collaboration with FECS (Fundacion Espanola de Cooperaacion Sanitaria) we agreed to fund two doctors from the Bugando Medical Centre in Mwanza. The aim of the project, the brainchild of Professor Fernando Marcia Garin, an eminent maxillofacial surgeon in Madrid, is the development of a first class fully coordinated multidisciplinary Craniomaxillofacial Unit in Bugando Medical Centre, to provide comprehensive and accessible treatment to people with cleft and craniomaxillofacial anomalies and associated problems. Bugando Medical Center is a tertiary referral specialist care centre for eight regions around the southern shores of Lake Victoria and serves a catchment population of over 22 million people. These aims are entirely consistent with those of Future Faces.
Dr Fidelis Mbunda and Dr Emmanuel Motega started their 9 month programme in Madrid in June 20024, where they worked with Prof Julio Acero (TOP LEFT) at Hospital Ramón and Hospital Universitario Quirón and with Prof José-Luis Cebrián-Carretero at La Paz University. (ADJACENT)
They transferred to Queen Victoria Hospital, East Grinstead at the end of September until their departure for a Christmas break at home in Mwanza. They will then continue their programme at the GSR Institute in Hyderabad from the middle of January for a further three months with Professor Gosla Reddy and his team.
Whilst in Madrid, they were exposed to a wide range of maxillofacial procedures including the management of facial and craniofacial trauma, salivary gland temporomandibular joint disorders. They were also introduced to great Spanish hospitality and food. Our thanks to all the staff in Madrid.
At Queen Victoria Hospital,the demographics are somewhat different as this is a tertiary referral centre for major maxillofacial, head and neck, ENT, plastic and eye surgery. Prof Aash Gulati oversaw their time and introduced them to the many consultant surgeons. They were involved in the management of head and neck cancer surgery and introduced to the world of microvascular reconstruction.
They have also seen much surgery for the correction of facial deformity and the management of craniomaxillofacial trauma. A huge thanks to all the wonderful staff at QVH.
More plans for training in Tanzania are developing.
VRIMS
An additional bonus at East Grinstead was working with one of the consultant surgeons, Prof Jag Dhanda who developed VRIMS (www.vrims.net), virtual reality in medicine and surgery. He says “this is the world’s largest immersive surgical training resource, bringing efficiency in training with improved retention and skill acquisition, as well as having the mission to use it for equity in learning for LMICs. The resources include anaesthetics and every surgical specialty including general surgery, trauma and orthopaedics, obstetrics and gynaecology as well as head and neck (plastics ENT and OMFS)”. It has now been introduced into all UK medical schools and is being adopted internationally. It is an amazing surgical training concept. It is our intention to install the necessary equipment in the Bugando Medical Centre.
Something more about…… .
VRIMS Changing the Game
VRiMS specialises in creating extended reality resources through virtual reality, augmented reality, and the metaverse. Our primary focus is on medical and surgical education and global health.
Our mission is to develop training resources for low to middle-income countries utilising extended reality technologies.
Our innovative approach involves live streaming of 360-degree videos in a virtual studio setup, making use of the entire 360 space with several camera overlays.
Currently, the VRiMS team travels extensively, hosting live streaming events globally to produce additional resources for low to middle-income countries.
We host in person medical and surgical training courses around the world, and live stream them in 360. Our material can be viewed on most devices, from high end dedicated PC VR headsets in 8K resolution, to cheap and accessible Android smartphones, with or without a stereoscopic viewer like Google Cardboard. This enables access to a wide audience of healthcare professionals around the world.
MAXTRAIN
The Tanzanian project will also collaborate with EACMFS (European Association of Craniomaxillofacial Surgeons) MAXTRAIN training programme, established on behalf of the Association by Professor Fernando Marcia Garin and Tony Markus.
This collaboration will include:
- Exchange of professionals between Bugando Medical Centre, and reference Hospitals and Universities in Europe and India
- Visit of international accredited specialists to Bugando to participate in the training of specialists.
- Scholarships for Bugando young surgeons for training periods in reference international centres. For the Bugando project, these have already been established thanks to a very generous donation from Paul and Helen Allen and Professor Les Snape
- Installation of a virtual training centre at the BMC
Nepal
With our support, the Centre continued to develop under the direction of Professor Sunil Sah. The ground floor, around the entrance was enlarged to include a new entrance, outpatients department and facilities for parents/carers.
After much hard work to comply with demanding standards, the CFC is now a Smile Train partner. This means it has funding for all cleft related surgery. Dr Jayanth Kesave, trained in Poole and now a consultant maxillofacial surgeon, in Bangalore, is Project Director, travelling up to Janakpur twice a month. He will oversee all cleft surgery and hopefully train the local surgeons to the high standard he learned whilst in Poole.
The Trustees decided there is no further need for Future Faces to provide funds for the Centre as they will become independent with the major funding from Smile Train, self-generated funds from charges made to some patients treated for other problems and charges for use of the Centre. No doubt they will seek funds for their development aspirations from other source.
We will continue to maintain an interest in the CFC and hope to see it prospering and developing.
We hope Santoshi will continue to have access to the care she will need over the next years and that she will be adopted by a caring and loving family
This project has been exceedingly challenging, demanding not inconsiderable efforts to ensure our funds were spent appropriately. Over the last seven years it has seen the development of an outstanding facility for the deprived people of this poor country, providing the most modern facilities for paediatric surgical care. The staff in the hospital have worked hard and continue to do so, especially the manager Krishna and senior nurse Christina, to whom we are HUGELY grateful. Significant donations were also made for individual items such as the now much used ambulance and a CT scanner. Future Faces can be proud of what it has enabled and will continue to take a close interest in the Centre.
Other news
MOU with GSR
We signed a formal agreement with GSR Hospital in order to conform with Indian government regulations about visitors to Indian hospitals. This merely formalises long standing arrangements with the hospital which provides exceptional training opportunities at both undergraduate, as well as postgraduate, levels.
Face Equality International
We made a small contribution toward travel costs to Phyllida Swift, CEO of Face Equality International, and arranged introductions for her at the CFC in Janakpur and GSR Hospital in Hyderabad in pursuance of her project on Stigma. The report can be found by clicking on this link: https://faceequalityinternational.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Face-Equality-International-Report-on-Interpreting-disability-Legislation-to-assist-people-with-Facial-Disfigurements-.pdf
Lord Mayor’s Colloquy
At the end of October 2024, the Lord Mayor of London hosted a gathering at the Mansion House for a group of eight charities involved in SDG3 Health and Wellbeing. All eight representatives, including the Chairman of Future Faces, gave a short presentation about their work, and this was followed by a general discussion amongst those attending. A lot of work was involved but sadly the anticipated presence of City philanthropists did not materialise. However, hopefully we have raised awareness of our work in a wider forum. It was good to be supported by several of our Trustees and friends.
Donations
We are grateful recipients of many donations from:
- Mrs Danuta Saville for the Craniofacial Centre Nepal and ongoing care of Santoshi
- Paul and Helen Allen
- Professor Les Snape, Christchurch, New Zealand
- Mr Thomas Reidy
- Many monthly donations and salary sacrifices.
Grants
The following received financial support from Future Faces during 2024:
- Phyllida Swift, CEO Face Equality International to conduct research, Nepal and India
- Laura Hutchings QARNS – nurse to Craniofacial Centre Nepal
- Victoria Vincent – final year medical student (Plymouth) to GSR Hospital, Hyderabad
- Maddy Harvey 3rd year medical student (Leicester) to GSR Hospital, Hyderabad (and her brother James)
- Julia Medina dell Valle Maxillofacial surgeon from Salamanca, Spain to GSR Hospital, Hyderabad
THANK YOU
If you can….. please support us by donating here.