Uganda
Despite recent strides in healthcare, infant health in Uganda remains a pressing concern, particularly in rural and underserved areas. Preventable diseases, malnutrition, and limited access to medical services continue to challenge the overall well-being of children in Uganda. Hydrocephalus is particularly problematic, especially in remote regions, where access to specialized medical care is often limited. Uganda is one of the youngest countries in the world, with 77 percent of its population under the age of 30. Children below 18 years account for 55 percent of the Uganda population (Uganda Bureau of Statistics). Uganda has a high incidence of neural tube defects (with over 100 operations done for spina bifida defects per year) and hydrocephalus.
When our founder, Dr. Benjamin Warf, moved to Mbale, Uganda, he quickly recognized the high number of children with hydrocephalus and the need to develop a safer approach to treating this devastating condition. Thus, the Warf Method (ETV/CPC) was developed.
Twenty years later, NeuroKids was born, and our long-standing partnership with two pediatric neurosurgeons, Dr. Peter Ssenyonga and Dr. Justin Onen, forms the foundation for training neurosurgeons around the African continent. Since 2022, we have partnered with Dr. Ssenyonga and Dr. Onen at the Mulago National Referral Hospital to provide lifesaving services for children.
Number of children who have received hydrocephalus surgeries since NeuroKids intervention:
31 Children
Since 2022
Partner Hospitals
K A M P A L A
Uganda Team
Dr. Peter Ssenyonga
PEDIATRIC NEUROSURGEON
Peter K. Ssenyonga received his medical degree from Makerere University in Uganda’s capital, Kampala, but it was in Mbale, in western Uganda, where he witnessed what was possible in treating children with hydrocephalus and spina bifida. There he met Dr. Ben Warf and was inspired to become a pediatric neurosurgeon.
In 2005 he joined the pediatric neurosurgery training program at the University of Cape Town, South Africa. He was awarded a Traveling Fellowship by the Pediatric Section of the AANS and spent 3 months with the Neurosurgery Department at Sick Kids Hospital in Toronto, Canada.
Dr. Ssenyonga is part of the Neurosurgical faculty at the Mulago National Referral Hospital. He was Vice President (East Africa) of the Continental Association of African Neurosurgical Societies (CAANS) and is also a founding Director of Neuro-Initiative Africa (NIA), a collaborative formed to advance evidence-based, cost-effective treatment of neurological diseases.
Working with NeuroKids not only provides him with an opportunity to reunite with his mentor (Dr. Warf) but also to work alongside a team that is dedicated to equipping neurosurgeons with endoscopic skills and equipment and caring about treating children with neurological diseases, especially hydrocephalus and spina bifida.
Dr. Justin Onen
PEDIATRIC NEUROSURGEON
Dr. Justin Onen is a neurosurgeon with more than 10 years of experience treating children with hydrocephalus and spina bifida. He was trained by Dr. Ben Warf in ETV/CPC in Mbale in the 2010s and is today a NeuroKids master trainer, having trained colleagues not only in Uganda but also in Morocco and Nigeria.
Dr. Onen received an MBchB in 2003 from Mbarara University of Science and Technology in Uganda and his Master’s in Medicine Neurosurgery in 2013 at the Mohammed V University Souissi in Rabat, Morocco. For the past several years, he has served as a neurosurgeon at the Mulago National Referral Hospital in Kampala, Uganda.
He is committed to sharing his knowledge and expertise to empower others in the field and to improve access to specialized neurosurgical care in Uganda and other underserved countries. Dr. Justin Onen’s unwavering commitment to pediatric neurosurgery has not only transformed the lives of countless children but has also inspired hope and resilience within the medical community of Kampala and beyond.
Stories and News From Uganda
We provide training curriculums, endoscopy equipment, and remote presence technology to hospitals and surgeons in places with the greatest needs.
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