Brainlab has announced the launch of the Right.Brain Foundation, which will provide medical technology and education to selected hospitals and public institutions in Southeast Asia, Africa, Central and South America.
Countries were reviewed carefully and selected based on several criteria including: per capita income, reliable energy supply, adequately trained healthcare professionals; keeping in mind the distribution of wealth, political stability and safety of the country as well as where patients may be able to benefit the most from providing treatment.
“We understand and acknowledge the World Health Organisation’s principles for a good medical equipment donation,” says Stefan Vilsmeier, president and chief executive officer, Brainlab. “The Right.Brain Foundation, which provides the equipment and trained personnel to the hospitals in need, also includes personnel training at the local hospital level. This helps further their education, provide hope for their country, and raise the bar in academic achievements for residents and studying physicians.”
The Right.Brain Foundation purpose, “Together we provide medical technology to create opportunities for a better world,” dovetails perfectly with the Brainlab vision to increase access to and consistency of treatment for patients everywhere. Brainlab is committed to supporting Right.Brain by providing on-point, frugal technologies that will make the most impact in the countries to be served. The technology that will be loaned to the hospitals is Kick Purely Navigation, a robust, reliable and minimalist image guided surgery system that is compact and can be easily shipped. Engineered with focused functionality, Kick is small but powerful and supports and advances neurosurgery efforts in developing countries.
Right.Brain will partner with hospitals and physicians in North America and Europe, building an exchange programme to help teach the physicians in developing countries how to use the technology effectively. Furthermore, Brainlab employees will volunteer their vacation time to Right.Brain to provide additional on-site training and support to the local hospitals.
Beyond time donations, Brainlab employees are also encouraged to give to Right.Brain via a variety of opportunities such as frequent flyer-mile donations, monetary donations at the Brainlab Open House on Friday, 11 July, 2014 in Feldkirchen, Germany and merchandise available at brainlab.com/rightbrain where 20% of the proceeds will be donated to the Right.Brain Foundation. In the near future, Brainlab will extend support opportunities to current business partners to further the mission of Right.Brain with additional technologies, training and education.
The inaugural Right.Brain project will take place at the Calmette Hospital in Phnom Pehn, Cambodia. For this operation, Right.Brain will cooperate closely with La Chaîne de l’Espoire, a French foundation which is locally based and will ensure a smooth integration of Brainlab technology and help ensure the mission’s success.
This announcement is the culmination of a passionate idea long held by Brainlab Founder and chief executive officer, Stefan Vilsmeier and just the beginning of the company’s social impact journey. This year, as the company celebrates 25 years of medical technology innovation, Brainlab expands its reach beyond the 80 countries currently served to include developing countries in need of the right medical technology to make a difference.
“This mission has been 25 years in the making; it extends beyond the walls of our corporate offices and the hospitals we traditionally serve.” Vilsmeier adds. “This project is unlike any other effort in which Brainlab has participated. Right.Brain will bring technology into underserved areas, connect experienced surgeons and staff with those in need of training and support and most importantly, help patients in need. In five years, we hope to have 80% of the countries using some type of surgical navigation and more patients benefiting from neurosurgical care.”
