From Nutrition to Burn Traumata: Vital Inequality of Children and Pediatric Surgical Care in Gabú, Guiné-Bissau, 2018-2020.

Abstract (English)

Children aged 0-14 years in Gabú, Guiné-Bissau, face vital inequalities. This paper calls for policy change in Pediatric Surgical Care in Global Health, and combines an anthropological approach with medical lenses, – based on practical work experiences in urban-rural Gabú as a nurse from Germany working for the German NGO Hammer-Forum Medical Aid for Children e.V. (HFO). Between 2018 and 2020, three pediatric surgical missions were conducted in Gabú, each lasting two weeks. Various surgical pathologies were treated, most with a significant socio-economic impact on the lives of the children and their communities. Most costs of medical treatments are not covered by Public Health policies.

There is a lack of data on pediatric injuries and non-communicable pathologies caused by nutritional deficiencies in Guiné-Bissau, as well as in other low-income countries on the African continent (Smolle et. al, 2016). Following pathologies are described and analyzed in the social context of Gabú through an anthropological lens using Therborn’s theoretical framework “Killingfields of Inequality” (2013) and Martha Nussbaum’s Combined Capabilities (2011) based on Amartya Sen’s Capability Approach (1993):
Contractures of fingers post burn; Radial Nerve Paralysis post forearm fracture; primarily and secondarily Chronic Osteomyelitis; and Genu Varum and Genu Valgum.

This analysis highlights the need for further data and research on first aid responders and treatment which may include traditional healers and healthcare facilities of the national Ministries of Health. It will show how affected communities deal with these pathologies and traumata, and what mitigation and prevention strategies of the community are already in place. Rich data and scientific research of Burn Centers in India can help understand the phenomena in Guiné-Bissau and identify appropriate preventive measures, treatment management and lessons learned. Accessible Pediatric Surgical Care needs more attention in global Public Health to reduce unnecessary suffering of children in Guiné-Bissau and beyond.