SPACIES

Volunteer Perioperative Services Abroad (VPSA) Database

For the past 16 years, the Society for Pediatric Anesthesia Committee on International Education and Service has hosted a searchable database of US-based volunteer organizations (NGOs) that provide medical services in underdeveloped countries.  This database is located on our web site: http://spacies.pedsanesthesia.org/ under the volunteering tab, and has been a resource for anyone (SPA members and non-members) looking to volunteer their talents. 

More recently, our committee has worked to overhaul and upgrade this database by creating a dynamic user dashboard that allows each organization to enlist and maintain their own information more easily.  We have also taken this opportunity to redirect the focus of the database and limit it to volunteer perioperative services.  NGOs previously included in the database were contacted to update their information. It is our hope that new organizations will also consider participating.  

We would like to reach out to the SPA community and ask all members who are actively working with an NGO in this capacity to encourage them to register with our database.  The registration process is easy and typically takes less than 10 minutes. Please refer organizations to the following website to request a login and begin the process: http://www2.pedsanesthesia.org/vpsasearch/getanid.iphtml

The site administrator will then email a login and a link to the website where each organization can enter or update their pertinent information. This information includes types of volunteers needed, principle activities for volunteers, countries where care is provided, timing and duration of volunteer activities, and more.

We also hope to develop a notification process to alert SPA members of urgent volunteer perioperative needs through both our website and Facebook page in the near future. If you have any questions, please contact David Liston via email at: david.liston@seattlechildrens.org.