Nthumba to Receive 2023 Noordhoff Humanitarian Award
Peter M. Nthumba, MD, will receive the 2023 Noordhoff Humanitarian Award during Plastic Surgery The Meeting 2023 in Austin. Dr. Nthumba will present his lecture on "Global Surgery: The War Against The Surgical Burden of Disease – A Winning Strategy," from 3 - 3:30 p.m. CT on Saturday, Oct. 28, in Ballroom F, Level 4 of the Austin Convention Center.
"Global surgery has had many changes – in name, champions, and strategies. Modern science has conquered the seas, the land and even space, yet the burden of surgical disease in low and low middle income countries (LMICs) remains unconquered. What ails global surgery? When billions of dollars are poured into technology, we see progress; billions in modern armies create intelligent killing machines. But billions poured into global surgery has often not yielded positive progress. Is global surgery a lost cause? Or are there strategies that could yield tangible, sustained results?"Dr. Nthumba is the Head and Program Director of Plastic Reconstructive Surgery at the AIC Kijabe Hospital. He is a Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Plastic Surgery, at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee.
Dr. Nthumba attended medical school at the University of Nairobi, where he graduated in 1995 and received a Master of Medicine in Surgery in 2002. In 2004, he became a Fellow of the College of Surgeons of East, Central and Southern Africa (COSECSA).
He trained in plastic surgery at the Department of Plastic, Reconstructive and Cosmetic Surgery, Christian Medical College, Vellore, India between 2006-2008. Additionally, he trained in hand surgery at the Paul Brand Hand Research Unit. Dr. Nthumba recieved a sholarship from the Fundacion Cavadas for a one year Hand and Microsurgery fellowship at the Clinica Cavadas in Valenica, Spain between 2008-2009.
Dr. Nthumba is a widely published author with interests in research, trauma, surgical infection, reconstructive surgery, and global surgery. He started a small research non-profit, EACH Research, to teach and mentor medical students and surgical residents.
He is a member of the WHO TAG (Technical Advisory Group) on hand hygiene and IPC. Previously, Dr. Nthumba was a member of The WHO Guidelines Development Group that developed the Hand Hygiene Guidelines published in 2009 and the Global SSI Prevention Guidelines published in 2016.
Dr. Nthumba is a past President of the Surgical Society of Kenya and current chair of the Global Surgery Committee of the SSK. He was awarded the SSK Humanitarian Award in 2022. He is also an international member of ACAPS and participates as faculty in the SHARE Research Club. He is the Research section editor for PRS Global Open and sits on the editorial board of the Annals of African Surgery.
Noordhoff Legacy
The Noordhoff Humanitarian Award was established to honor the legacy of Dr. Samuel Noordhoff and has been funded by the Department of Plastic Surgery at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital.
The endowment works to recognize plastic surgeons that lead a life dedicated to humanitarian outreach and use their skills to provide care for less fortunate patients. The endowment will fund an award that will be issued annually at Plastic Surgery The Meeting.
The remarkable story of Dr. Noordhoff's dedication to mission work and impact on Chang Gung Memorial Hospital can be read here.