West Yorkshire surgeon’s Nepal return amid earthquake relief effort

Earthmovers clear the debris at the site of a building that collapsed in an earthquake in Kathmandu, Nepal, on Tuesday May 12. Picture by AP Photo/ Niranjan Shrestha.

Sunil Sah, who is based at Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust in Wakefield, spent nine days working at three different hospitals across the most affected regions after arriving in Kathmandu.

He led a team of surgeons, from the British Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (BAOMS), to offer advice and assist other medical workers during seven major surgeries.

The devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake that hit on April 25, and a second major tremor on May 12, killed more than 8,600 people and brought down buildings in Kathmandu and the country’s central districts.

Mr Sah, who is originally from Nepal, said: “As soon as I heard about the devastation caused by the earthquake, I just wanted to do everything I could to help. I hope that being able to contribute, even in this small way, will take the some of the pressure of the local medics who are working around the clock to help those affected.”

The team treated patients at Tribhuvan University teaching Hospital, Bir Hospital, National Trauma Centre and Dhulikhal Hospital – all close to the area where the devastation occurred.

Links with three hospitals in the Kathmandu valley allowed for severe facial injuries to be dealt with across the region. A further trip including BAOMS members is planned for late June 2015.