Maternal mortality
88
Mothers die per 100,000 births in the Philippines. For comparison: Germany 4, Malawi 256 (WHO, 2020).
Volunteer medical aid · Since 2012
We are a volunteer medical team. We operate, provide safe anesthesia, and train alongside local partners.
Why we go
Medical care exists. Just not everywhere.
In the Philippines, there are about 79 doctors per 100,000 people (2021). In Germany, about 453 (2022). In Malawi, the distance to the nearest clinic decides over life and death.
Doctors per 100,000 people
79
Doctors serve every 100,000 people in the Philippines. For comparison: Germany 453, Malawi 5 (2021/2022).
Sources: World Bank (physician density, 2021/2022) and WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, World Bank, and the UN Population Division (maternal mortality, 2020).
What we do
We operate, provide safe anesthesia, and train medical staff, together with local partners.
Philippines
Surgical emergency relief and training for local medical staff since 2012, from Siquijor to Mindoro.
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Malawi
Maternal care at St. Gabriel's Hospital in Namitete in 2017.
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Ukraine
Medical emergency relief in Saarland, at the border, and inside Ukraine since 2022.
View missions →How a mission works
Four weeks. One OR. One team.
A mission does not begin with the first incision or end with the final stitch. Over four weeks, an often-unused operating room becomes a working place of care.
Week 1
Arrive and rebuild.
The team surveys the operating room, gets equipment working, and sorts supplies shipped ahead by container. At the same time, examinations begin and the surgery schedule takes shape.
Weeks 2 to 3
Operate. Every day.
Five days a week, the schedule runs at full pace: planned procedures, frequent thyroid operations, smaller surgeries, and readiness for acute emergencies.
Week 4
Follow up and hand over.
The final week is for follow-up, complex cases, and handover to local teams. The work lasts when knowledge and reliable routines remain.
In the field
Real moments from our missions: people waiting for us, hands preparing, and encounters that stay with us.
Every mission begins with people.
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What we've achieved so far
Impact
Since 2012 we have brought surgical care to where it is missing. Volunteer-run, funded mission by mission, together with local teams.
Who makes it possible
On vacation: at the operating table, not the beach.
A volunteer team of surgeons, anesthetists, and nurses from Saarland, Fulda, and other hospitals. Every mission costs vacation days, none costs a fee.
Surgical nurse Roman Schön is preparing the next mission: “It is fulfilling a life's dream.”
Meet the team →
Get involved
The next mission begins with your donation.
The next team is due to operate on Mindanao in the Philippines in spring 2027. Around €60,000 is needed for equipment, medication, and local training. Team members cover their own flights and vacation time.
€1,919 / €29,997
15 donations so far
Live status of the Philippines mission 2027, source: betterplace.orgDonate on betterplace →
Examples of typical mission needs; individual donations are not assigned to one specific item.
Clicking an amount opens the betterplace.org form right here on the page; your IP address is transmitted to betterplace.org. You can choose a different amount in the form.