After a month of processing the immense impact of our Cambodia 2023 Medical Mission here are some thoughts from Dr. Joseph Hsin who led this mission. We are excited to share the impact of this year’s trip to Cambodia and how that ties into the impact of our longterm relationship with our friends in Cambodia over the past 23 years.
When the Cornerstone Foundation first arrived in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, in 2000, things were dismal at best. Having gone through years of political turmoil since their holocaust in 1974, the people of Cambodia finally arrived at some semblance of peace following the last coup d’etat of 1998. However, the tragedy that befell this small country the size of Colorado, exacted a large price on its people. Over 30% of its 7 million people were killed over the four years of terror known as the Killing Fields.
A medical school had been established in Phnom Penh in 1950 and by 1975, there were about 950 well-trained physicians in Cambodia caring for its 7 million people. During Pol Pot’s reign of terror, all but 38 physicians were killed; and only 20 of these remained in 1980 to try to reestablish medical care. The medical school was re-opened in 1980 and anyone with medical training was given 6 months in the classroom followed by 1 year of on-the-job training and then sent out to the cities and provinces as a “physician”.
It is estimated that approximately 1,000 of these “physicians” were sent out in the last 20 years. The medical school has since reopened, and students now are able to gain better training there, as well as with studying abroad in France; these young doctors hope to bring their country out of the medical dark ages. However, the medical infrastructure is lacking as are supplies and equipment.
The Cornerstone Foundation has been sending surgical teams to Cambodia for 23 years. In October, 2023, the Cornerstone Foundation sent a team of 15 physicians, nurses, ancillary personnel and students to Phnom Penh, Cambodia to perform surgeries on patients and to support Dr. Sim Sokchan at the Christian Medical Ministry to Cambodia - Jeremiah’s HopeClinic. Dr. Sim Sokchan was born right after the Khmer Rouge were in power in 1979. His parents were forced into an arranged marriage by the Khmer Rouge regime along with 17 other couples.
They hoped to find stability outside of Cambodia so they fled to Thailand, hoping to make it to a Thai refugee camp. Their travel was hampered and they were forced to walk back to the city from Preah Vihear province near the northern border through the jungle. “My mom said she had me in her womb when she had to walk back through the jungle. People step on land mines and exploded. They took many days to arrive in Phnom Penh,” recalled Dr. Sokchan. His dad, a factory worker and his mother, a primary school teacher made a life in the city and so Dr. Sokchan grew up in Phnom Penh. He decided to enter into the medical field and was able to attend medical school early in Phnom Penh at age 16. After spending 7 years in medical school, he met doctors from Colorado who sponsored him for a three month visit to do an externship rotation in Colorado in 2001. He completed his medical training and did 3 years of general surgery residency in Phnom Penh. He was accepted to do a fellowship in France in neurosurgery where he studied for two years.
Over the next 15 years, Dr. Sokchan has emerged as the leading neurosurgeon in his country. There are over 30 neurosurgeons in Cambodia, all in the city of Phnom Penh. Patients from rural provinces and even adjacent countries are referred to Phnom Penh for neurosurgery care. Dr. Sokchan became an international member of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons in 2016, then international fellow of AANS in 2020. He teaches neurosurgery residents and will be appointed assistant professor soon. While Dr. Sokchan is able to purchase Chinese made spine equipment to perform his surgeries, he is continually plagued with breakage of screws and rods because of the poor quality of the materials.
One of the volunteers on a Cornerstone Foundation trip connected us with Zimmer Biomet and in 2018, Zimmer Biomet donated $5.7 million dollars of surplus spine equipment to Jeremiah’s Hope. Over the past 5 years many Cambodian patients have been helped with those donations. Most of the smaller sizes of screws and interbody devices have been used. On this current trip, ZimVie donated additional inventory to Dr. Sokchan, making it possible for ongoing care of Cambodian spine patients who otherwise would not have options.
On our most recent visit, we had the privilege of meeting one of the recipients of ZimVie’s recent donation, a 64 year old farmer from Kandal province with chronic low back pain and right radiculopathy for a year. He had increasing difficulty walking for 3 months and was unable to work. His X-rays showed multiple levels of degenerative disc disease and spondylolisthesis at L5-S1. He underwent a successful four level decompression and fusion which resolved his sciatic pain.
For the past 23 years, various NGOs such as ours have striven to improve healthcare in Cambodia, and have been able to do so only by generous donations of time, money and medical equipment by companies such as Zimmer Biomet and ZimVie. One cannot understate the impact of such generosity, and the lives that are changed by the surgeries we perform in the short time we are there.
-Dr. Joseph Hsin, Cambodia 2023 Medical Mission Team Lead and Cornerstone Foundation Board Member
