Karachi:A witty person by nature, Philip Ransley does not take himself seriously despite developing successful pediatric urology units worldwide and training hundreds of people. He is currently in Pakistan as a guest at the 2nd International Pediatric Urology Workshop at the Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation (SIUT).

While talking to The News, Ransley spoke about the rapid progress of Laparoscopic surgery. “Instead of open cut or creating a large incision, laparoscopy is done by inserting a small telescope through a small hole,” says Ransley, adding that after 20 years it has progressed to a point that even the removal of a gall bladder is being done through laparoscopy.

When asked how much progress had been made in this area so far, he said that there had been a lot of progress in terms of the number of surgeries as sophisticated tools and instruments were also being introduced to make this form of surgery easier. “But it is not as easy as it sounds because it needs lots of learning and practice.”

Ransley said that the health care situation in Pakistan is different from other countries in the sense that an estimated 15,000 children are born in the country each year with developmental defects of urinary tract. “Lack of skilled support in pediatric urology — like trained nurses, skilled surgeons and psychologists — is creating a gap which cannot be filled by SIUT alone. So, we need to make more such institutions, where we have specialists in every field,” he added.

SIUT invited a bevy of highly-trained and skilled surgeons to their workshop to perform live surgeries with interactive sessions with the students. Ransley said he was impressed by the enthusiasm of the students who participated in the three-day workshop. “They were asking very good questions and picked the information provided to them quickly. What I do not see yet is the clear motivation by universities and major hospitals to create specialised departments of pediatric surgery or urology, as what needs to be done is to provide facilities for the 50 per cent of the population that is under 15.”

Developmental defects of urinary tract are as common in our population as in other parts of the world and major urinary tract reconstructions have become a routine, said Professor Alaa El-Ghoneimi, a Pediatric Urologist and Professor of Pediatric Surgery at the University of Paris.

Being renowned worldwide for his skills in minimally invasive surgery, Professor Ghoneimi is a man of few words. It is his first visit to Pakistan.

He said that late diagnosis is the result of initial deficiencies turning into abnormalities at a later stage. Ghoneimi said that health situation of children was not the same everywhere in the world and loopholes could be closed through collaboration between countries.

According to him, health care issues were more common in the developing countries as compared to the West. “These issues can be addressed here too. They only thing needed is to give priority to the needs of the people and working with enthusiasm and sincerity.”
The news