Mission in La Entrada, Honduras (September 8 – 12, 2025)

In partnership with Clinica Manos Amigos, a multidisciplinary UCLA/ Columbia University team including Dr. Yuri Novitsky, Dr. David Chen, and Dr. Justin Wagner completed a one-week humanitarian training and service mission to Honduras, providing hernia care to underserved adult and pediatric patients. During the mission, the team safely performed 72 operations, addressing a range of inguinal, ventral, and umbilical hernias. In addition to direct patient care, the mission emphasized education and sustainability, with Hernia Help surgeons working side-by-side to train three Honduran surgeons in contemporary hernia repair techniques and perioperative decision-making. This collaborative effort improved immediate patient outcomes while strengthening local surgical capacity and advancing long-term access to high-quality surgical care. This mission held special significance honoring the memory of Dr. Jarrod Kaufman, past-president of Hernia Repair for the Underserved. With Dr. Seth Newman and Jarrod’s wife Rachel, Hernia Help completed Jarrod’s planned mission building new ties to this community.