My sincere gratitude goes to the AUA/Urology Care Foundation™ for this honor of a Humanitarian Grant Award, which will further support my work in the area of global health.

I have been very fortunate to travel to Dakar, Senegal, numerous times since 2016, working side by side with Dr Serigne Magueye Gueye, chief of urology, HOGIP (Hôpital Général Idrissa Pouye) Hospital, who I now know to be a good friend (Figure 1)! My first voyage was through IVUmed (International Volunteers in Urology), and much of my subsequent trips have remained largely affiliated with this tremendous organization whose focus is on providing urological services, education, and training in low resource countries (www.ivumed.org). With each trip, my focus has been on training urology and gynecology residents, medical students, and surrounding providers about the proper evaluation and management of female pelvic floor disorders, with an emphasis on female urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse (Figures 2 and 3). Although the repair of various obstetric vaginal fistulae (vesicovaginal and rectovaginal, predominately) has always been included on the programs, it was clear from my very first trip that there was a knowledge and training gap concerning the treatment of other female pelvic floor issues. We all know too well the devastation caused by obstetric fistulae, how women are disowned by their husbands, ostracized by their communities, and often left to suffer alone. Today there are a number of expert fistulae centers throughout Africa that are helping find these abandoned women and, through surgery and subsequent support, give them back their dignity, their hope, and their lives. The reality is, however, that some women remain incontinent after their fistula is repaired due to nonfistula-related pelvic floor issues which can be commonly experienced, ie, female stress urinary incontinence and overactive bladder urgency incontinence. Similarly, there are many women without fistulae who suffer from the same devastating, socially isolating issues due to incontinence. Not surprisingly, issues with vaginal and uterine prolapse are common as well. My personal charge, therefore, has been to provide concrete educational and training experiences through didactic teaching (both virtual and in person) and hands-on surgical workshops to further expand the foundation in women’s pelvic and genitourinary health. The surgical trainees, in turn, go on to other communities—often their home countries throughout Africa—to further the mission of expanding capacity by providing quality urological care for their patients, including for female pelvic concerns. “Teach One. Reach Many.”—this is the motto of IVUmed. This is at the core of all we do as we strive to develop sustainable programs that serve to increase medical and surgical capacity around the globe. My personal long-range dream is to develop a broader female pelvic medicine and surgery training program to serve our fellow African urology and urogynecology colleagues which will include didactics, hands-on simulation, and live training sessions, with a focus on educational outcomes assessments.

Figure 1. Dr Serigne Magueye Gueye, my mentor and friend.

Figure 2. Madina Ndoye, MD, community urologist in Senegal learning minimally invasive transvaginal hysteropexy.

Figure 3. A and B, Surgical training with the residents at HOGIP (Hôpital Général Idrissa Pouye) Hospital, Dakar, Senegal.

On a personal note, I have always felt the calling to serve others…to serve those deemed less fortunate due to circumstances beyond their sphere of influence. I have found great fulfillment in my work in Africa knowing that the lasting impact of helping a woman return to a normal life helps not only her, but her family, her community, and society itself. Although not always recognized as such, women are often the backbone of these communities and lifting up everyone else within it; with that…changing the life of a woman positively impacts all those around her!

I have also come face-to-face with the seemingly unbreakable strength of the human spirit and what it truly means to be resilient in the face of great suffering. And with that, bear witness to the nourishing power of gratitude, hope, and love. I feel truly privileged and humbled to be given the opportunity to see intimately into the lives of others and to be able to play a role in re-establishing dignity and empowerment for women globally.

Once again, a heartfelt thank-you to the AUA/Urology Care Foundation™ for this Humanitarian Grant Award and the opportunity to continue my work in Africa.