Pathologists overseas: coordinating volunteer pathology services for 19 years

Abstract

Pathologists Overseas is a nonprofit organization that has been coordinating the efforts of volunteer pathologists and technologists for 19 years to improve and provide affordable pathology services to underserved patients worldwide. This is accomplished by aiding and establishing pathology laboratories, providing diagnostic pathology services, and training local physicians as pathologists. Projects have been completed or are currently active in Kenya, Eritrea, Madagascar, Ghana, Nepal, Bhutan, Peru, El Salvador, and St Lucia. The main challenge is finding enough volunteers to provide uninterrupted service to maintain a project. Our goal is to build on these experiences and continue to both support existing and establish more pathology laboratories worldwide.