Survey of Surgery and Anesthesia Infrastructure in Ethiopia

Abstract

This survey of Ethiopia's hospital resources attempts to identify specific areas of need where resources, education, and development can be targeted. Because the major surgical mortality comes from late presentations, increasing accessibility through infrastructure development would likely provide a major improvement in surgical morbidity and mortality rates. Infrastructure limitations of electricity, water, oxygen, and blood banking do not prove to be significant barriers to surgical care. The increasing number of physicians is promising, although efforts should be directed specifically toward increasing the number of anesthesiologists and surgeons in the country.