Lifebox, with generous support from theIZUMI Foundation, in partnership with Mario Catarino Rivas hospital (HCMR) and the Honduran Anesthesia Society (SHARD), has been making significant strides in improving surgical safety across Honduras. Over the past year, our work has focused on equipping healthcare providers with essential skills and implementing systems to enhance surgical and anesthesia safety, making measurable strides in patient outcomes.
Since May 2023, Lifebox has significantly expanded its training capabilities in the Central America region, adding a total of 13 regional faculty trained in delivering both the Safer Instruments and the SAFE OR workshops. Five of these faculty members are based in Honduras. In March 2024, Lifebox and SHARD conducted a SAFE OR (Teamwork) workshop in Tegucigalpa, training 26 multidisciplinary providers from 13 hospitals on effective teamwork in the operating room. Additionally, our Safer Instruments workshop trained 33 nurses and instrument technicians in sterilization practices, directly impacting 20 facilities. These workshops have been crucial in ensuring that more healthcare professionals are equipped with the necessary skills to improve surgical safety.
One of the hallmark achievements of our efforts has been the Clean Cut program at Mario Catarino Rivas in San Pedro Sula, launched in December 2023. Clean Cut aims to improve patient outcomes by adhering to surgical infection prevention standards. It focuses on six perioperative standards to reduce surgical site infections (SSI), including appropriate skin preparation, administration of antibiotics, proper gauze counting, confirmation of instrument and gown/drape sterility and appropriate use of the Surgical Safety Checklist. Through this initiative, 35 healthcare workers across Mario Catarino Rivas Hospital were trained in Infection Prevention Control and Processes and improved processes around the six Clean Cut standards.
The Clean Cut program’s success owes much to the dedication of the Mario Catarino Rivas team, including engineer Jorge Romero, who ensured data quality and analysis, and Dr. Gabriela Murillo, an infection prevention specialist at the hospital. Reina Cruz and Mirta Morales, our first Latin American Fellows, have also been pivotal in bringing leadership and fostering networks to advance surgical quality in the region.
“ Existing protocols in our hospital have been updated to ensure that they are duly observed and carried out in a timely manner. Our patients have benefitted in many ways from the clean cut program”
Dr Edgardo Iraheta, Surgeon, Mario Catarino Rivas Hospital
Finally, recognizing the critical need for capnography devices in low-resource settings, Lifebox has been working to bridge this gap in Honduras. With the introduction of the Smile Train-Lifebox Capnograph, we aim to enhance anesthesia safety by ensuring monitoring of exhaled carbon dioxide and oxygen saturation during surgeries. This initiative is part of our broader effort to improve surgical and anesthesia safety in Honduras, where currently, 113 operating rooms do not have access to a capnography device. We will continue to work in partnership with SHARD to bridge this gap over the next three years.
Looking ahead, Lifebox remains committed to improving surgical and anesthesia safety in Honduras. With continued support from the IZUMI Foundation, we look forward to expanding our initiatives and making a lasting impact on surgical systems in the region. Our goal is to ensure safer surgeries for all, and we are grateful for the support that allows us to pursue this mission.
