New Surgical Center Means More Life-Saving Care at CURE Uganda

Unrelenting seizures. Dangerous water on the brain. Devastating tumors. For 25 years, CURE Children’s Hospital of Uganda (CURE Uganda) has restored hope—and the chance at a healthy future—for children made vulnerable by life-threatening neurological conditions.

Thanks to a brand-new state-of-the-art surgical center, now the hospital can perform 500 more surgeries each year, providing urgent life-saving care for more of these precious little ones.

Executive Director Tim Erickson emphasizes the facility’s importance at CURE Uganda, the first and only hospital in sub-Saharan Africa exclusively dedicated to pediatric neurosurgery.

“This hospital is truly having a multiplier effect and expanding access to neurosurgery for children. With our new modernized surgical center, we will be able to reach even more children than before,” he says. “We’re so excited. The future ahead is bright.”

Extending Life-Saving Care and the Hope of Jesus

Since opening in 2001, CURE Uganda has emerged as one of the world’s leading specialized pediatric hospitals for children with life-threatening conditions like hydrocephalus, spina bifida, and brain tumors. The hospital has performed more than 30,000 neurosurgical procedures for children in need while sharing the gospel message with nearly 300,000 people.

Medical Director Dr. Emmanuel Wegoye says the demand for specialized neurosurgical care only continues to increase. “Over the last three years, we have seen patient volume grow by up to 60 percent. That growth is not a statistic; it is families arriving at our gates in increasing numbers, many with nowhere else to turn.”

The new 15,300-foot two-story facility meets that need while addressing something equally important: operational efficiency.

“We can now manage emergency cases without disrupting scheduled surgeries, reduce late starts in the operating room, and eliminate the overtime pressures that come with trying to serve more children in a space that was built for a smaller reality,” he says.

Equipped with four modern operating rooms and seven post-anesthesia beds, the new center was thoughtfully designed around one central question: Does this make care safer and better for every child?

With a clear “yes,” the space includes cutting-edge technology to improve patient flow and safety during complex neurosurgeries, resulting in less time under anesthesia and faster recoveries—all while meeting the highest international standards for surgical care.

And because sharing the hope of the gospel is also central to CURE’s mission, the surgical center was designed with the spiritual and emotional needs of patients and their families in mind.

The area also contains a dedicated counseling office and a pre-anesthesia space where CURE staff can pray with caregivers, listen to their concerns, and remind them that they and their children are loved by God and made perfectly in His image.

“From the moment a family walks through our doors, often frightened, often exhausted, often having lost hope long before they found us, our ministry team is present,” says CURE Uganda’s Spiritual Director Fred Wangwa. “Ministry is woven into the walls of this center, not added as an afterthought.”

More Space to Train Tomorrow’s Surgeons 

In addition to providing the highest-quality life-saving neurosurgical care to more children, the spacious new center offers more room to train the next generation of neurosurgeons through the hospital’s CURE Neuro program.

CURE Neuro is a prestigious year-long program in pediatric neurosurgery, particularly for infant hydrocephalus and spina bifida, aiming to bridge the gap in qualified surgeons. CURE plays a critical role in filling that gap by equipping residents and fellows with not only surgical skills but also Christ-like compassion.

With just one neurosurgeon for every 6 million people in sub-Saharan Africa (compared to 66 for every 6 million in the US), this is an important step toward meeting the increasing need for neurosurgical care in Uganda and across the continent.

Through the program, CURE Uganda has helped train 78 surgical fellows, now serving in 28 countries around the world.

Expanding Hope for More Children

With increased surgical capacity and opportunity to train more surgeons, the new surgical center is bringing hope to more children in need of life-saving care—like Elisha.

At two months old, Elisha was diagnosed with life-threatening hydrocephalus after his mother, Brenda, noticed swelling in his forehead. After being referred to, he received two life-saving procedures to drain fluid from his brain and Brenda received emotional support from the spiritual team.

With continued care through CURE mobile clinics near his home, today Elisha is thriving, reaching milestones and sitting up on his own.

“Hope has replaced despair,” says Brenda.

It’s the hope of parents like Brenda that fuels CURE’s steadfast dedication to healing in Jesus’s name. With more space to provide the highest-quality care to some of the most vulnerable children in the world, CURE Uganda is poised to provide life-changing care to the region for many years to come.