Ealing Hospital's Child Refugee Surgeon Tells Her Story
Sala Abdalla interviewed on BBC Radio London
Sala Abdalla is a consultant at Ealing Hospital
August 22, 2023
A surgeon at Ealing Hospital who came to this country as a child refugee aged 10 has told her story in a radio interview.
Sala Abdalla spoke on BBC Radio London about her experiences on Tuesday morning (22 August). She works general and upper GI surgeon meaning that she often is required to perform life saving procedures such as removing a ruptured appendix or dead bowel.
Sala, whose family came to the UK from the Sudan, was determined to follow a career in medicine after being moved by the injustices of private healthcare in her homeland.
The consultant, who could only speak Arabic when she arrived in London, said, “We left the Sudan when I was a ten-year-old but it made a real impression on me that if you didn’t have money you were often destined to die prematurely of otherwise treatable conditions.
Anything is possible if you have the right work-ethic.
“I sought solace in education and my teachers were extremely supportive. They never doubted that I would make it and I owe them a lot of gratitude.”
Her willingness to help others less fortunate led her to set-up a surgical charity called Operation International where groups of surgeons, nurses and anaesthetists volunteer to travel to low-income countries to carry out free operations and train local doctors and nurses.
She has made trips to hospitals in rural Ghana working with fellow volunteers who performed over 100 procedures in less than a week.
She added, “My advice to any young woman interested in a surgical career is to never think it is beyond them. Surgery is one of the most demanding of medical disciplines, requiring years of dedication, discipline and resilience.
“However, it teaches you to become confident, decisive and an excellent problem solver. It is a rewarding career with opportunities to develop additional interests such as in research, teaching and mentoring.”
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