Ernestine Gwet-Bell (born 1953) is a gynaecologist from

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...

, who supervised the first successful in vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment in Cameroon.

Early life

Gwet-Bell was born in 1953 in Sackbayémé, in the department of Sanaga Maritime,

. Her father was initially a

Catholic priest The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the Holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in layman's terms ''priest'' refers only ...

, but converted to become a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

pastor; her mother was a nurse and midwife. One of six brothers and sisters, she studied medicine at the University of Paris 5. Her first job was at the Council of Baptist and Evangelical Churches Hospital in

Bonabéri Bonabéri is a port in the Littoral Region of Cameroon. It is located on the western side of the harbour across the Wouri River from the larger port of Douala. Districts Bonaberi has 10 districts: * Bojongo * Bonamatoumbe * Bonamikano * Bo ...

, which was affiliated to the church she attended; she also worked at the Laquintinie Hospital.

Career

Gynaecology

In 1987 she opened a private practice, the Odyssey Clinic, in Douala, which as of 2020 was one on of Cameroon's most respected gynaecological medical facilities. Alongside five other colleagues she founded Cameroon's first assisted fertility centre: Centre des Techniques de Pointe en Gynécologie-Obstétrique; her co-founders are: Berthe Bollo, Guy Sandjon, Monique Onomo, Nicole Akoung and Christian Pamy. In 2016, the first public IVF centre opened in Yaounde. Gwet-Bell was its director in 2020. In In 1998, Gwet-Bell supervised the birth of the first Cameroonian child born through ''in vitro'' fertilization. The baby was called Thommy. In 2004, her team were able to successfully practice

Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI ) is an in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedure in which a single sperm cell is injected directly into the cytoplasm of an egg. This technique is used in order to prepare the gametes for the obtention of em ...

(ICSI), an innovative technique designed in 1992 to fight against male sterility in the context of IVF. As of August 2007, she a'nd her team were responsible for the birth of 500 babies through ''in vitro'' fertilization. She is President of the Inter-African Fertility Study, Research and Application Group, as well as the union of private doctors in Cameroon. In 2019 she chaired the organisational committee of a conference which brought together gynaecologists and neonatal specialist from across Cameroon together.

Autism

One of her nephews has autism and in 2005 she founded Orchidée Home, which is designed to support autistic children and their parents. Two years later, in 2007, she organized the first autism congress in Cameroon.

Selected publications

* 'The 5 main challenges faced in infertility care in Cameroon' ''Global Reproductive Health'' (2018). * 'Prise en charge chirurgicale de l'infertilité : moyens et spécificités en Afrique sub saharienne' in ''Reproduction Humaine et Hormones'' (2013). * 'Traitement médical de la femme infertile en Afrique' in ''Reproduction Humaine et Hormones'' (2013).

Personal life

Gwet Bell is married and has two daughters and a son.

References

External links

Dr Ernestine Gwet Bell se raconte
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gwet Bell, Ernestine Living people 1953 births Cameroonian women University of Paris alumni Cameroonian obstetricians and gynaecologists Autism activists People from Littoral Region (Cameroon)