Smile Train, Kids Operating Room seek to reduce carbon footprint through solar pediatric theatres

As the world commemorates Earth Day, top cleft charity Smile Train and Scottish charity Kids Operating Room are tackling the dual challenge of greenhouse gas emissions from theatres while prioritizing paediatric surgery by installing solar surgery systems.

This is in the backdrop of power cuts in African hospitals which can severely impact patient care with many hospitals suffering from hundreds of hours of power outages each month and in some cases, these power cuts last for days.

Meanwhile, when they’re working at full capacity, operating rooms are a significant source of greenhouse gas production for hospitals.

Smile Train Vice-President and Regional Director for Africa Nkeiruka Obi noted that the solution is a win-win for access to critical surgical care and reduction in the carbon footprint.

“The daily consumption of medical equipment is 1.5 KWH, and the new system could last up to 6 hours, saving 1.5 tons of CO2 each year. This system improves our surgical infrastructure and access to critical care. Backed-up systems enable our surgical teams to carry out their treatment without fear. It also reduces the carbon footprint of the operating room that draws energy from the power grid and reliance on diesel generators. Going green with our pediatric theatres is a win-win that while saving lives we are also safeguarding our planet,” said Obi.

In 2023, Kids Operating Room carried out a pilot study in four hospitals in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and Nigeria, which recorded among the highest power outages.

Of the four sites, the Democratic Republic of Congo had the longest average outage time of 176.7 minutes and lost the most amount of time to power outages during the trial.

Nigeria came second, experiencing outages more frequently than any other hospital, although the average power cut was shorter at 96.01 minutes.

Zimbabwe and Tanzania fared better but still lost significant time during the trial to power outages, with Zimbabwe still losing more than two days in total during the trial.

The pilot study which was carried out for 31 days showed a CO2 reduction of 1,104.84 kg. They project that 13 tons of CO2 will be reduced in just a year from the pilot.

Following the success of the pilot, the two charities will implement solar surgery installations across 40 paediatric theatres by 2025.

Smile Train and Kids Operating Room work together in countries around the world to increase capacity for safe paediatric surgery, including lifesaving cleft lip and palate surgeries.