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He's the first -- and only -- neurosurgeon in Sierra Leone : Goats and Soda : NPR

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Dr. Alieu Kamara of Sierra Leone stands in front of a surgical bed outfitted with improvised bolsters and a foam headrest. He is the country's first and only neurosurgeon. "We used to lose a lot of patients due to head injuries, spinal cord injuries, spine fractures and the like," Kamara said. "There was nothing we could do for them." That reality inspired him to pursue training in the field. Morie Abibu, a 56-year-old father of three, lies on a hospital bed in the humid Sierra Leonean heat. He is paralyzed from the neck down. After months of immobility, his soft muscles sag and pool on the bed, barely hanging onto bone. A mass is growing at the base of his skull, pressing against his spinal cord. And as it grows, it obstructs the nerves that control his breathing. He is slowly suffocating to death. Abibu needs neurosurgery to remove the deadly pressure. "Without it, he will have a devastating end of life," says Dr. Marco Lee, past president of the Western Neurosurgical Society. "When

Goats and Soda One neurosurgeon, 8 million patients August 17, 2025 11:14 AM ET By Sophia Li Dr. Alieu Kamara of Sierra Leone stands in front of a surgical bed outfitted with improvised bolsters and a foam headrest. He is the country's first and only neurosurgeon. "We used to lose a lot of patients due to head injuries, spinal cord injuries, spine fractures and the like," Kamara said. "There was nothing we could do for them." That reality inspired him to pursue training in the field. Sophia Li for NPR hide caption toggle caption Sophia Li for NPR Morie Abibu, a 56-year-old father of three, lie

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