Global Client Profiles

From cutting-edge research hospitals to makeshift clinics, Medfix International works directly with medical centers all over the world, putting high-quality instrumentation in the hands of surgeons in 55 countries and counting.

Medical Relief in the Middle East

Dr. Khaled Hadeli, a pulmonary specialist and Libyan medical relief coordinator in Tucson, AZ, had the opportunity to get involved in helping Libyan freedom fighters in 2012. The doctor, who was educated in Tripoli, spotted a news report stating that due to a lack of equipment, surgeons had to amputate limbs using household tools to save fighters’ lives during the conflict. He then approached Medfix’s Joseph Samaha for help, who in turn donated tools and supply worth close to $50k. Being able to supply surgeons in critical situations like this is a substantial part of Medfix International’s mission, and it reflects how hard work, courage, cooperation, and generosity can contribute to change the world.

Cutting-edge Techniques in Hanover, Germany

Medfix’s Clinical Director is Dr. Jose R. Vazquez, an orthopedic and trauma surgeon with over two decades of experience at the operating table. Dr. Vazquez recently traveled to Germany’s Hannover Medical School (MHH), a top-ranking research hospital at the forefront of European medical advancement, to take advantage of its training and testing resources.

At MHH, Dr. Vazquez was able to receive high-end training on new surgical techniques and participate in the development and testing of new implants. These research visits keep the director apprised of the specific areas of surgical expertise and resources available in different countries around the world. “It’s very important for us to have this background,” says Dr. Vazquez. “When we learn a new surgical technique, we can design instruments that allow us to perform the same surgical technique with a different instrument, or even develop better instruments to improve the technique itself.”

Limited Resources in Nogales, Mexico

Dr. Vazquez has also spent over 20 years working with government-run hospitals in Mexico. With little infrastructure and limited access to money and resources, these medical centers often find themselves searching for ways to do more with less.

While the facilities at Nogales and Hanover may have obvious differences, patient cases often do not. “We have the same high-energy trauma cases and fracture treatment—you still have to use the same basic principles and apply it to the same problem,” says Dr. Vazquez. It’s this challenge that drives Medfix’s interest in designing instruments that can be used in multiple techniques and on multiple areas of the body. “You have to think about developing implants and instruments that’ll somehow let you do the same procedure in first-world countries and apply it in developing countries. That means affordability and accessibility.”

"…you do the same procedure in first-world countries and apply it to developing countries. That means affordability and accessibility."
Dr. Jose Vazquez, Medfix Clinical Director

One distinct advantage to working in hospitals like the one in Nogales is the sheer level of hands-on experience they provide: “You see a lot of cases in these hospitals, 50-60 every day. You gain a lot of experience. And it gives me the ability to channel that into researching, developing, and manufacturing instruments for those same patients–it’s great to participate this way.”