The National Sports Medicine Foundation (NSMF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, charitable organization. We rely on philanthropic contributions, competitively awarded grants, and corporate partners to support our research, advanced education programs, and community support programs.
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Our Mission
The Sports Medicine Outreach Initiative: Arthroscopy Education in Cabo Verde is a comprehensive educational program organized by Dr. Timothy S. Johnson through the National Sports Medicine Foundation. This program aims to provide essential Orthopaedic Sports Medicine surgical training and equipment to the health care professionals servicing the population within the Cabo Verdean public health system.
About Cabo Verde
Cape Verde, formally The Republic of Cabo Verde, is a ten-island archipelago located in the Atlantic Ocean approximately six hundred miles west of Senegal, West Africa. It is an independent nation with consistently one of the most stable democratic governments in Africa. Its remote location makes the administration of Orthopaedic surgery challenging. The nation faces a critical need for Orthopaedic surgical supplies and surgical skills education. The country relies on imports for all essential medical resources, including medical school education, nursing school education, surgical training, surgical supplies, equipment, implants, and pharmaceuticals. The government has been working to improve healthcare infrastructure and services but requires charitable support to elevate the standards of care currently being administered on the archipelago.
Access to quality surgical services is limited by a lack of equipment, training, and facilities. Even these limited services are only available at two locations: the Hospital Agostinho Neto in the capital city of Praia on the island of Santiago and the Hospital Baptista de Sousa in the port city of Mindelo on the island of Sao Vicente. Injured inhabitants of the remaining islands are required to endure the burden of travel to these locations for Orthopaedic surgery. The NSMF has been collaborating with these two hospital entities to provide medical supplies, equipment, and Orthopaedic surgical training in an effort to empower trained Cape Verdean Orthopaedic surgeons with the skills and equipment necessary to improve the well-being of its population.
Foundation Board Members
| Dr. Timothy S. Johnson MD | President |
| Dr. David C. Johnson MD | Vice President |
| Joseph Watson | Member |
| John Rice | Member |
Our Purpose
Through this arthroscopy mission, the National Sports Medicine Foundation strives to ensure the availability of simple, quality Orthopaedic surgical services that are currently inaccessible to the Cape Verdean citizenry. Our missions emphasize Orthopaedic surgery education and surgical skills training. The program offers comprehensive training sessions to local Cape Verdean healthcare professionals by expert United States American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery Subspecialty Sports Medicine certified Orthopaedic surgeons and US certified surgical technician and nursing staff. NSMF, the CVAMS and the local health professionals are committed to empowering the Cape Verdean health system with the knowledge , skills and equipment required to independently manage routine Orthopaedic sports medicine conditions on the archipelago.
The proposed training mission will comprehensively cover a multidisciplinary range of services surrounding an episode of surgical care including but not limited to preoperative assessment, preoperative planning, outpatient surgery, regional anesthesia, post-operative physical/occupational therapy. US Board certified representatives from each of the domains will be traveling with our delegation to facilitate education in each area of expertise. By establishing a sustainable framework of support, this initiative aspires to create a culture of quality healthcare that equips Cape Verdeans healthcare professionals with the tools and resources to restore mobility to the injured in their community. By addressing Orthopaedic needs and promoting community health, the National Sports Medicine Foundation envisions a stronger, more resilient, and thriving Cape Verdean society.
Sponsors
Coming soon.