When the then College of Medicine opened in 1992, Malawi took a major step towards training its own medical doctors and strengthening the country’s healthcare system.
But while it gradually expanded training in medicine and other health sciences, dentistry remained absent for decades due to limited resources, infrastructure and specialist personnel.
It was only in 2019 that Malawi introduced its first Doctor of Dental Surgery programme at Kamuzu University of Health Sciences, nearly 27 years after the medical college was established.
Today, the institution also offers a diploma in dental sciences in Lilongwe as part of efforts to strengthen oral healthcare services in the country.
Still, the gap remains enormous.
Police records show Malawi registered 1 894 road accidents between January and June 2025 alone, with 411 being fatal as they claimed 464 lives while hundreds sustained serious injuries.
Studies on road traffic injuries in Malawi have also shown that facial and traumatic injuries remain a growing public health burden, particularly among pedestrians, cyclists and passengers.
Yet currently, the country is relying on a single oral and maxillofacial surgeon, Dr. James Mchenga, to treat hundreds of patients requiring specialised care.
At Kamuzu Central Hospital in Lilongwe last week, Mchenga stood beside a visiting team of eight volunteer surgeons from the United States of America (USA) preparing to conduct free surgeries for about 50 patients suffering from facial deformities, tumors and other complex conditions.
The surgical camp was organised by Dr. Tania Nkungula, a Malawian oral and maxillofacial surgeon based in the US, who mobilised fellow specialists after learning that Malawi was relying on a single specialist to serve a population of over 20 million people.
Speaking during the exercise, Mchenga described the situation as overwhelming.
“I have about 250 patients on my waiting list, yet I only manage to operate four or five times a month. It is impossible to help everyone under these conditions,” he said.
Mchenga noted that increasing road accidents, oral cancers, facial deformities and traumatic injuries have increased demand for specialised oral and maxillofacial services in the country.
At the same time, Malawi continues struggling with limited theatre space, inadequate specialist training and shortage of equipment.
And that is the gap Tania is helping to close.
She is stretching her wings beyond the operating room to restore smiles, dignity and hope to vulnerable people.
Tania serves is chief of oral and maxillofacial surgery at a Level II trauma Centre in the US.
However, she is also leading humanitarian medical missions through Smiling Surgeons, Inc.
“Since I am also a specialist, I mobilised my colleagues to come and provide free treatment to patients who would otherwise struggle to access this care,” she said.
But beyond conducting surgeries, Tania said her long-term goal is helping Malawi strengthen its own specialist healthcare capacity.
Through Smiling Surgeons, she has supported students at Kamuzu University of Health Sciences, donated surgical and dental equipment and introduced a mobile dental clinic to expand access to services in underserved communities.
Tania says medical missions should not simply involve foreign doctors coming temporarily and leaving.
“Sustainable impact is important to me. We do not want to simply arrive, perform surgeries and leave,” she said.
The doctor says Malawi needs stronger systems to train and support more specialists locally.
Born at Malamulo Hospital, Nkungula grew up in a family where service to others was part of everyday life.
Her father, Tommy Nkungula, was a teacher who valued education, discipline and integrity while her mother, Dr. Alice Nkungula, dedicated her life to nutrition education and caring for communities.
She says growing up in such an environment shaped her understanding of compassion and leadership from an early age.
“Our home was filled with conversations about helping people, faith, hard work and using your gifts to uplift others,” she said.
Even after moving to the US at the age of six, she says Malawi remained central to her identity.
“The spirit of Malawi never left me. The warmth, humility and resilience of Malawians shaped the kind of doctor and leader I became,” she said.
Although she always loved science and medicine, Tania did not initially know she would become an oral and maxillofacial surgeon.
“What drew me to maxillofacial surgery was the complexity and artistry involved. The face is deeply connected to identity, confidence, speech, eating and human connection,” she said.
“To restore someone’s face is to restore confidence, dignity and hope.”
Her educational journey in the USA later pushed her into one of medicine’s most demanding and male-dominated specialties.
Tania eventually made history as the first female resident to complete the oral and maxillofacial surgery residency at Meharry Medical College.
“Surgery is extremely demanding physically, mentally and emotionally. There were moments when I questioned myself and moments where I felt the pressure of being the first,” she said.
Still, she says the experience taught her resilience and confidence.
“I learned that courage is not the absence of fear. It is continuing despite fear,” she said.
“It showed that Black women, African women and immigrant women belong in spaces where historically we were underrepresented.”
Today, her days involve trauma surgery, facial reconstruction, dental implant surgery, office-based anesthesia and hospital consultations.
Despite the pressure that comes with surgery, she says she always remembers that every patient represents more than a medical condition.
“Behind every surgical case is a human being with fears, dreams and a family,” she said.
As a Malawian woman working in US hospitals, Tania said she sometimes had to work harder to be seen and heard.
“There were certainly moments where I had to work harder to be taken seriously. My goal has always been to pursue excellence consistently and without apology,” she said.
Her humanitarian work became even more personal following the death of her younger brother, Mayamiko, in 2022.
Rather than allowing grief to consume her, she chose to channel it into service.
“Mayamiko was not only my brother. He was my confidant and someone who helped manage my practice,” she said.
That experience strengthened Tania’s commitment to Smiling Surgeons Incorporated.
“Every surgery we perform and every patient who smiles again becomes part of Mayamiko’s legacy too,” she said.
Her humanitarian connection to Malawi stretches back years.
Tania previously worked at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital in 2009, but returned through organised international medical missions.
Working alongside Mchenga, she says returning to Malawi as a surgeon prepared to serve was one of the proudest moments of her life.
“To step back onto Malawian soil not just as a visitor, but as a surgeon equipped to help change lives, was deeply emotional,” she said.
One patient who continues to stay in her memory is David Bagire, whose recurrent facial tumor once attracted public attention on social media.
One of Tania’s long-term dreams is establishing a floating hospital on Lake Malawi capable of reaching isolated lakeshore communities in Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania.
The floating hospital, she said, would provide surgeries, dental care, screenings and maternal healthcare directly to remote populations struggling to access specialised treatment.
“Africa deserves bold healthcare solutions designed for its unique realities,” she said.
Tania said she wants to use her skills to uplift others and help close one of Malawi’s biggest specialist healthcare gaps.
And for dozens of patients waiting for surgery, the smiles being restored at Kamuzu Central Hospital are already proof that her wings are reaching far beyond borders.
