Last April I went to the Solomon Islands to volunteer at Helena Goldie Hospital, an experience that I feel has changed my whole outlook on life.

The Solomons is a stunning place, a real desert island experience, but the isolation of such an area leads to many downfalls. Medications are hard to come by, sanitation is poor and there is a real lack of basic medical equipment to perform simple procedures. Health education is relatively non-existent and there is a real problem of poorly controlled diabetes and heart disease, something I did not expect to come across while out there.

I also spent a lot of time looking after sick children. A lot of the cases were truly heartbreaking, cases of sexual abuse resulting in tertiary syphillis were apparent on a weekly basis, resulting in young children having to re-learn to walk as a result of the infection which had been left untreated for so long. Due to the poor lack of maternal services and baby checks at birth, many cases of congenital heart disease are not picked up until it is too late, resulting in children dying of heart failure as early as age 7, something that would never happen in the UK.

Having said this the community was very welcoming during our stay and it was evident from the reception wherever we went that they were so grateful of the work we were doing. We worked alongside two Swiss doctors, who are dedicating their lives for 2 whole years to trying to improve the hospital. The steps that they have made are incredible and there is so much hope for what the future can hold for this rural hospital in the Solomon Islands. They were an inspiration to me, so passionate about trying to transform the lives of people from the Solomons. From donations from Switzerland they have been able to open a TB ward, which mean that TB patients can be treated in relative isolation rather than on an open ward, where there is the risk of infecting other patients. Below is a link to their fundraising page which shows videos of the hospital.

https://ruckstuhl4charity.com

In order to try and raise some money for this excellent cause I am running Bath Half marathon, something that Im not particularly looking forward to, not to mention getting out in the cold to train for it. As a doctor I find I don't have a lot of time, so committing to training may be a challenge, but I am determined to get round in a good time in order to raise money for a fantastic cause! Please give as much as you can, the people of the Solomons will be so grateful.