Two years ago, while I was backpacking through South East Asia, I had emergency life-saving surgery in Cambodia.

What began as suspected gastroenteritis quickly became much more serious. After several days of tests, I was diagnosed with appendicitis. After having open abdominal surgery, I was also found to have pelvic peritonitis.

Doctors in the UK have since told me I was incredibly lucky to survive. This was only down to the dedicated medical care I received in Cambodia.

While the medical staff were compassionate and dedicated, the conditions they were working in were deeply under-resourced. For example:

• The emergency department was mainly outside, with just a tin roof for shelter

• After major surgery, I received just one dose of morphine - the rest of my pain relief was a paracetamol drip

• The hospital had only one elevator, so I was carried up and down stairs on a stretcher

• Staff were working 26+ hour shifts, often napping in offices between patients

• It is expected that family members help with care - my friend had to empty my catheter, take me to the toilet, and carry me on a stretcher

• I witnessed outdated medical practices, including anaesthesia being administered on the operating table, and a woman beside me being operated on while awake and without pain relief

• The wards were so overcrowded, I could have held hands with the patients beside me

Cambodia’s healthcare system is still recovering from the devastation of the 1970s Khmer Rouge regime. Under the brutal dictatorship of Pol Pot, more than two million lives were lost in a genocide that saw education, compassion and intellect as enemies. Medical professionals were hunted down and by the time the terror was over, Cambodia’s healthcare lay in ruins. Only ten doctors are believed to have survived. While much has been achieved to improve the situation, there is still a lot of work to be done. Hospitals need more equipment, medicinal supplies, better training & education, and more staff.

That’s why I’m running the Great North Run this September: to raise funds for Transform Healthcare Cambodia, an incredible charity working to strengthen the healthcare system that saved my life.

At Transform Healthcare Cambodia, their mission is:

To relieve sickness and promote and protect good health, particularly, but not exclusively, in Battambang Province, Cambodia.

They fulfil this mission by focusing on four key objectives:

• Training healthcare workers to improve clinical knowledge and practice

• Educating communities on disease prevention and hygiene

• Providing essential medical equipment, ensuring it can be maintained or replaced locally

• Offering financial support for healthcare-related services where resources allow

Your donation will help ensure that people in Cambodia receive better, safer, and more dignified care—something I was lucky enough to receive, and something everyone deserves.

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Thank you so much for your support ❤️

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