Our History

While on a trip to Africa, Dr. Leo Lagasse and his wife Ann were deeply moved by the plight and suffering of women in Africa. In 1995, Dr. Lagasse called upon his colleagues, organized a group of physicians to return to Africa and developed an ongoing program to improve the lives of these women and their families. Since then, Medicine for Humanity’s dedicated teams of physicians and residents has performed over 200 surgeries annually while providing hands-on training to local doctors and nurses. Many of the surgeries are complex and involve high-risk cancers and life-threatening maternal birth injuries and traumas, which could be prevented by caesarian section, often not available in distant areas.


Our work in countries like Eritrea, Philippines, Mongolia, Nepal, Ethiopia, Kenya, Cameroon, Niger and Uganda has proven to be immensely rewarding. Surgeries are performed jointly with our team and local doctors. This ‘elbow to elbow’ surgical training provides a profound learning experience for both local medical staff and the U.S. team. The beauty of this relationship is that when we leave we know the local physicians are now better able to continue to perform these surgeries and maintain their improved surgical skills.

- LEO LAGASSE, M.D., PRESIDENT, MEDICINE FOR HUMANITY