The story of Bridget Mendy, a young Gambian Scoliosis survivor
Lamin, a coastal town in The Gambia; a West African country with over 2.5 million people is home to 20 year old Bridget Mendy, a one-time patient of FOCOS Hospital and a recent graduate of St. Peters Senior Secondary School. Bridget was a happy, outgoing and sporty young girl who lived with both parents, Mr and Mrs Mendy, until her family saw signs of a bend in her back as a teenager.
Bridget’s parents noticed an unusual bulging and curving of her back in 2011, and sought medical care afterwards. Medical officers at Edward Francis Small Hospital in Gambia couldn’t diagnose her, and so recommended that she sought medical care abroad. Since the ‘unknown condition’ was rather too complex to be treated locally as indicated by the doctors, Mrs Mendy, a teacher and Bridget’s mum, desperate to see her child’s health fully restored, embarked on a mission to find a medical center which could treat her daughter.
It was on this quest that she stumbled upon FOCOS Orthopaedic Hospital online. To her surprise, the world class facility was in Ghana, West Africa and so she quickly contacted Ms Margaret Boucher, a family friend and Mendy’s eventual sponsor to share the news. Ms Boucher researched further and made the necessary arrangements to bring Bridget to the hospital for treatment. On November 8, 2016, Bridget paid her first visit to FOCOS Hospital where she was diagnosed with Scoliosis (abnormal lateral curvature of the spine) for the first time.
Above is a picture of Bridget’s condition before surgery
After completing the necessary preoperative procedures, Bridget was scheduled to undergo surgery three weeks after, on December 1. The surgery was successfully performed by Prof Oheneba Boachie-Adjei and Dr. Yankey together with their able team in the Operating Room. When Bridget fully recovered, she returned home to her parents in February 2017, three months after surgery. “I can’t explain the joy I felt inside. The whole family was extremely happy and couldn’t believe the transformation in my life, and how good I looked as compared to when I first visited FOCOS,” Bridget said.
When we caught up with Bridget during her postoperative review, she had this to say; “The doctors confirmed that I’m in good shape now and can get back to my normal life; and make sure I don’t put pressure or strain my back for the time being.” She further advised anyone who had any Orthopaedic ailment such as joint pains, scoliosis, Kyphosis, and others, to come to FOCOS for treatment.
(From the left X-ray before and X-ray after)
“FOCOS is one of the best hospitals I’ve ever been to; I’ve never seen such good nurses. The facilities at the hospital are the best and can be compared to any in the world, she affirmed. The doctors, nurses and staff are very professional, friendly and treats all patients equally, so I encourage everyone to make FOCOS their number one choice for optimum orthopaedic care,” she said.
“Finally I’d like to say a very big thank you to Prof Oheneba Boachie-Adjei and his team for their generosity, patience and for taking good care of me and making an impact in my life,” she added.
