Tom Catena | |
|---|---|
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| Born | (1964-04-27)27 April 1964 (age 60) Amsterdam, New York, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | Duke University (MD)[1] Brown University (AB)[2] |
| Occupation(s) | Physician,surgeon, Aurora Humanitarian Initiative Chair |
| Medical career | |
| Institutions | Mother of Mercy Hospital |
Thomas Gerard Catena is an American physician who has been practising inGidel in theNuba Mountains ofSudan since 2008.[3][1][4] On May 28, 2017, he was awarded the second annualAurora Prize for Awakening Humanity, receiving a $100,000 grant and an additional one million dollars for him to distribute to three humanitarian organizations.[5] He has been likened to the 20th-century medical missionaryAlbert Schweitzer.[2]The New York Times has published instructions on how to donate to Catena.[6] In 2018, Dr. Catena was appointed Chair of theAurora Humanitarian Initiative.[7]
Born inAmsterdam, New York, United States, as the son of anItalian-American judge, Gene Catena, and his wife Nancy, Catena grew up with six brothers and a sister. His brother Paul is aCatholic priest.[8]
Catena graduated as thesalutatorian from Amsterdam High School and later with abachelor's degree inmechanical engineering fromBrown University in 1986.[9] While at Brown, Catena playednose guard on theBrown Bears football team[10] and was a member of theDelta Phi fraternity. In 1987, he spent a year as English teacher inTokyo, Japan. He later received hismedical degree fromDuke University,[1] on aU.S. Navy scholarship.[9]
During his fourth year at Duke, Catena went on his first mission toKenya in 1992.[2] After graduating, he completed a one-year internship ininternal medicine at theNaval Medical Center San Diego in 1993 and later joined the U.S. Navy. For the next four years,[11] he served as aflight surgeon; in this capacity, he wasstationed at theNaval Support Facility Diego Garcia from 1994 to 1995. After hisdischarge from the Navy in 1997, Catena began apostgraduate residency infamily medicine atUnion Hospital inTerre Haute, Indiana, while also participating in one-month medical mission trips toGuyana (1997) andHonduras (1998).[9]
When he finished his residency in 1999, Catena decided to continue volunteering with theCatholic Medical Mission Board (CMMB) and spent two and a half years as a missionary doctor at Our Lady of Lourdes Mutomo Hospital in the rural settlement ofMutomo, Kenya. From 2002 until 2007, he worked as aconsultant at the private St Mary's Mission Hospital inNairobi.[4]
With CMMB, Catena volunteered to help theRoman Catholic Diocese of El Obeid establish the Mother of Mercy Hospital in theNuba Mountains, which was built in 2007 by Bishop Macram Max Gassis and first launched its operations in March 2008.[9] The region has been an area of active conflict since the mid-1980s, with a short period of peace from 2002 until early 2011,[12] and Catena is the only surgeon for the surrounding population of 750,000 people.[13] The hospital'scatchment area covers roughly one third ofSouth Kordofan, equivalent in size to the entire country ofAustria.[14] Patients frequently travel by foot or hitchhiking for up to a week to reach the Mother of Mercy Hospital. At any one time, it has between 300 and 450 in-patients. Patients visit the hospital for ailments varying from fractures,diarrhea,thyroid disease and cancer but also an increasing number of victims of bombing attacks ormalnourishment spurred on by the war.[1][12][14]
Humanitarian aid is restricted, a ban that Catena defies.[13] Very fewNGOs still operate due to theKhartoum government's blockade.[1] Since 2012, aid is not expressly forbidden, but it is in practice impossible as volunteers may not travel into the region.[1]German Emergency Doctors andSamaritan's Purse had a presence as of 2013, but employed no trained medical doctors in the region.[1] Limited by his surroundings,[15] Catena sometimes uses decades-old treatments, and earns $350 a month while being on call 24/7.[16] He engages the local community in the work as nurses and otherassistive personnel,[1][2] including through trainings inKenya,South Sudan, andUganda.
The Mother of Mercy Hospital was subject to bombings bySukhoi Su-24 fighter jets operated by theSudanese Air Force in May 2014,[17] although at the time no one was injured.[14][1] In preparation in case of bombings the compound now has a number of foxholes where patients and staff can flee for the duration.[14]
Catena credits hisCatholic faith for his work, and says he is inspired by St.Francis of Assisi.[1][16] He is known by locals as "Dr. Tom" and is widely respected by the population. A local Muslim chief said of Catena, "He'sJesus Christ", owing to Catena constantly healing the sick, helping the lame walk, and making the blind see.[16]
Since 2016, Catena has been serving on the selection committee for the annualGersonL'Chaim Prize for Outstanding Christian Medical Mission Service. In 2018, he was appointed chair of theAurora Humanitarian Initiative, a position he holds in addition to his activities in Sudan.
Since May 2016, Catena has been married to his wife Nasima, a nurse.[11][26] They have a son.
