Operation International

What Operation International does

Operation International is a 501c3 nonprofit medical charity founded in 1996 by Medhat Allam, MD; Ravi Kothuru, MD; and Robert Mineo, CRNA, headquartered in Southampton, NY. The organization delivers free surgical and medical care to underserved communities in Africa, Asia, and South America, while training local physicians, improving hospital infrastructure, and sheltering and educating orphans in three orphanages. Since founding, OI reports 25,000+ surgeries and 100,000+ patient screenings delivered, with 450+ eyesight-restoration procedures, 500+ major general surgeries, 250+ reconstructive dental procedures, 150+ head and neck tumor removals, and 100+ gynecological tumor removals performed in 2025 alone. The organization is also establishing a first-of-its-kind neurosurgery center at Holy Family Hospital in Techiman, Ghana, and executed an inaugural Team Indiana Hearts cardiac mission to Kenya in May 2026.

Operation International operates through a federated chapter model spanning the USA, UK, Spain, Hong Kong, Hungary, Canada, and Kenya, with 30+ specialized teams organized by surgical discipline — including cardiac (Operation Hearts, Indiana Hearts, Team Hearts), neurosurgery (Team Neuro), cleft repair, ENT, orthopedic, ophthalmology (Operation Restore Vision), dental, women's health, pediatrics (Team Kids), and general surgery. Each chapter operates independently and funds its own missions, with volunteers typically required to raise $2,500 via GoFundMe toward mission travel and supplies. Notable 2026 additions include Team ATL (Atlanta dental), Team KY (Kentucky head and neck), Team Hungary (Budapest-based reconstruction and general surgery), and the Critical Care Initiative (CCI), which extends the model into healthcare system strengthening, pandemic preparedness, and disaster response. The organization has no proprietary technology platform; its "product" is the volunteer-staffed medical mission itself.

The organization's revenue model relies entirely on tax-deductible charitable contributions from individuals, corporate sponsors, and foundation grants, with no fees charged to patients. Major in-kind and financial partners include Edwards Lifesciences and Abbott Valves (medical devices), The Dox Foundation, The Beacon Foundation, and Midwest Cardiovascular Research and Education Foundation (cardiac mission funding), and Caribbean Heart Institute (Guyana cardiac partner). Operational scale is signaled by 25 missions planned for 2026, a Charity Navigator 4-star rating, GuideStar transparency seal, and an active social media presence across Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and LinkedIn. The organization is led by Founder and Chairman Medhat Allam, MD, with a Board of Directors governing an expanding network of physician-led teams across multiple continents.

Name

Operation International

Legal name

Operation International

Website

https://operationinternational.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Operation International is a 501c3 nonprofit founded in 1996 that delivers free surgical and medical care to underserved communities across Africa, Asia, and South America through 30+ volunteer-led chapters, while training local physicians and supporting three orphanages.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Southampton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Sponsorships: Operation International is a 501c3 nonprofit organization funded entirely through charitable donations from individuals, corporate sponsors, and foundation grants. Contributions are tax-deductible. The organization does not charge patients for any medical services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Operation International provides free surgical and medical care to underserved communities in Africa, South America, and Asia through volunteer medical teams organized into specialty chapters (cardiac, neuro, ENT, orthopedic, cleft, ophthalmology, dental, women's health, general surgery). In addition to direct medical services, it trains local physicians, improves hospital infrastructure at base hospitals in countries such as Ghana, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Laos, Vietnam, Bhutan, and Ethiopia, and provides shelter and education to 2,400+ orphans through three dedicated orphanages.

Product overview

Operation International is a nonprofit medical charity organization (501c3), not a technology product company. It offers humanitarian medical mission services through 30+ specialized teams (chapters) that provide free surgical and medical care to underserved communities worldwide. The organization operates a multi-team model including dental care teams (Team ATL, Team Dental), surgical specialty teams (Team Cleft Repair, Team ENT, Operation Hearts/Team Hearts, Team Neuro, Team Ortho), vision restoration (Operation Restore Vision), women's health, and general medical teams. Supporting services include physician training programs, hospital infrastructure improvement, and orphanage support. The teams are headquartered across the USA (Atlanta, Chicago, DC, Florida, Kentucky, LA, Manhattan, Maryland, Michigan, New York, Texas), UK, Spain, Hungary, Canada, and Kenya.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Team New York: The founding team of Operation International, based in New York
• Team Chicago
• Team UK
• Team Spain
• Team ATL
• Team KY
• Team Hungary
• Team CCI (Critical Care Initiative)
• Team Hearts/Operation Hearts
• Team Neuro
• Team Cleft Repair
• Operation Restore Vision
• Team Dental
• Team ENT
• Women's Health Team
• Team Ortho
• Team DC
• Team Manhattan
• Team Michigan
• Team Maryland
• Team LA
• Team Canada
• Team Florida
• Team Indiana Hearts
• Team SEE Kenya

Products and services

• Volunteer Medical Missions Program The core program of Operation International: sends volunteer medical teams of surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses, and allied professionals from multiple specialty chapters (cardiac, neurosurgery, ENT, orthopedic, ophthalmology, dental, cleft repair, women's health, general surgery) to underserved countries in Africa, South America, and Asia to deliver free surgical and medical care. Free of charge to patients.
• Physician and Healthcare Worker Training Program Provides training and knowledge exchange to local physicians, surgeons, nurses, and allied healthcare workers in partner hospitals across underserved countries, with the goal of building sustainable local surgical and medical capacity.
• Hospital Infrastructure Improvement Program Improves hospital infrastructure at partner base hospitals in underserved countries through equipment donations, facility renovations, and multi-year investments such as the planned establishment of the first regional neurosurgery center at Holy Family Hospital in Techiman, Ghana.
• Orphan Shelter and Education Program Provides shelter, education, and care to orphans through three dedicated orphanages (including the Jack Van de Wetering School and Orphanage in Rakai, Uganda) and support for additional school facilities such as the Glory of Christ School and Orphanage, serving 2,400+ children.

Quantifiable outcome

• 25,000+ surgeries performed since founding in 1996
• +7 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Team KenyacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Team Kenya collaborated with Team Indiana Hearts during the cardiac mission to Kenya in May 2026, providing warmth, hospitality, and clinical expertise that enabled the team to work as a unified group.
• Caribbean Heart InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023In 2023, the Caribbean Heart Institute joined forces with Operation International – Team Hearts to increase the potential for the group to access the resources, technical equipment, and critical skillsets needed to perform complex cardiac surgery in Guyana and around the world. Karen Perreira serves as the main administrator of the Caribbean Heart Institute (formed in 2009) and coordinates OI missions in Guyana.
• Holy Family Hospital, Techiman, GhanacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023OI's base hospital where the organization is establishing the first neurosurgery center in the region, with Team Neuro planning to build the program through training of local staff and equipment donations over 3-5 years.
• Surgical Teams Working in Africa Together for Safer SurgeryminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTeam UK partnered with this organization to bring low-cost mesh needed for hernia surgeries to Holy Family Hospital in Ghana during their December 2023 mission.
• Felege Hiwot Hospital, Bahir Dar, EthiopiacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTeam NY has been working for several months with Felege Hiwot Hospital which serves a population of 5+ million with limited capacity. OI plans to spend several years building a base at the hospital, helping patients, donating equipment, and training local doctors and nurses.
• Champasak Provincial Hospital, LaoscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTeam NY collaboration with Champasak Provincial Hospital marks the largest project ever undertaken by a foreign NGO in the region, with Team NY and Team Cleft Repair conducting back-to-back missions.
• Kakamega County Hospital, KenyacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTeam SEE Kenya (Surgical Education and Empowerment) and Team Restore Vision are establishing Kakamega as a new base for OI humanitarian medical missions. This is the first time any outside eye surgical team has come to this region of Kenya.
• CARE InternationalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCARE International provides ongoing follow-up care for hydrocephalus patients treated by Team Neuro in Ghana.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Partners in Health: A globally recognized nonprofit delivering healthcare in resource-limited settings via local staff training and long-term infrastructure investment. Comparable to OI's physician-training and hospital-infrastructure programs across Africa and Latin America.
• Doctors Without Borders / Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF): A large global medical humanitarian NGO deploying volunteer physicians to deliver care in underserved and crisis-affected countries. Highly comparable operating model to Operation International, though MSF operates at vastly greater scale and across a broader emergency-response mandate.

Direct peers

• Mercy Ships: Operates hospital ships staffed by volunteer surgeons delivering free surgical care and training local healthcare workers in sub-Saharan Africa. Closely comparable to OI's multi-specialty volunteer surgical mission model and focus on Africa.
• International Medical Corps: A U.S.-based humanitarian nonprofit that deploys volunteer medical professionals to provide free healthcare and medical training in underserved and conflict-affected countries. Directly parallel to OI's mission model of volunteer-led surgical outreach combined with local capacity building.
• ReSurge International: A nonprofit that sends volunteer plastic and reconstructive surgeons to provide free care and train local providers in developing countries. Comparable surgical-mission-plus-training model to OI's general surgery, ENT, and reconstructive teams.
• CURE International: Operates specialty pediatric surgical hospitals in developing countries staffed partly by visiting volunteers. Comparable specialty-hospital-plus-volunteer model to OI's planned neurosurgery center and other specialty infrastructure investments.
• Health Volunteers Overseas: A nonprofit that sends volunteer healthcare professionals to train local providers in developing countries. Highly aligned with OI's physician training and knowledge-exchange focus, though smaller and education-centric rather than surgery-centric.

Emerging players

• Mending Kids: A smaller nonprofit funding volunteer-driven surgical missions for children in underserved countries. Direct niche overlap with OI's pediatric-facing teams and surgical outreach in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
• Smile Train: A global nonprofit focused exclusively on free cleft lip and palate surgery and training in developing countries. Direct functional overlap with OI's Team Cleft Repair and cleft repair mission trips to Vietnam and Laos.
• Operation Smile: Provides free cleft lip and palate surgeries to children in low- and middle-income countries through volunteer medical teams, and trains local clinicians. Direct competitor in the same niche as OI's Team Cleft Repair.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/operationintl
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCnSf7Yktu5Lh8vMB1lmoPHQ/featured
• Facebookfacebook.com/operationinternational
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/operation-international
• Instagraminstagram.com/operationinternational

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Operation International