First National Prosthesis Walk-a-thon in the Philippines

On December 19th, Physicians for Peace was proud to co-sponsor the First National Prosthesis Walk-a-thon in Manila. Dr. Penny Bundoc and Lyne Abanilla of Physicians for Peace Philippines helped with this extraordinary event, which featured participants who were beneficiaries of prosthetic donations through the Walking Free Program. Below are some postings of local news coverage, recounting the inspiring stories of the courage of these individuals. This is the incredible impact you have on people’s lives when you support Physicians for Peace and the Walking Free Program:

Artificial Leg Makes Amputee “Complete” by Sheila Crisotomo  posted by Philstar.com

This child joins fellow amputees in the first National Prosthesis Walkathon held last Friday along Roxas Boulevard in Manila. Edd Gumban

For the first 21 years of her life, Lhea Medrano, 24, was full of insecurity and dependent on other people.

She could not even go to the mall alone for fear that she would fall down and embarrass herself in public.

Born with severed right leg, Lhea grew up walking with the use of a crutch.

“I felt like I was not complete – physically, emotionally and mentally. I was so withdrawn, especially among strangers. Sometimes, I would feel depressed,” she told The STAR.

But in 2005, Lhea’s life drastically changed. She began walking like any normal individual, as she became a recipient of an artificial leg from the Mubility Amputee Support Group of the University of the Philippines’ MU Sigma Phi Fraternity, in partnership with the Physicians for Peace and UP-Philippine General Hospital.

“Now, I can go anywhere I want – alone. It is easier for me to go to work. My prosthesis really boosted my morale,” enthused Lhea, who now works as an assistant secretary.

The groups organized last Friday the first National Prosthesis Walkathon at the Baywalk on Roxas Boulevard in Manila to raise awareness that the technology of prosthesis-making is available at the PGH at significantly lower prices.

In a joint statement, Dr. Michael Tee and Dr. Ray Joseph Badulis, past and present Most Exalted Brothers of the fraternity, respectively, said the MU Sigma Phi Fraternity came up with the Mubility Project through the selfless effort of brod Dr. Pipo Bundoc and wife Dr. Penny Bundoc.

“The MU has been involved in all activities, from wheelchair constructions and donations to prosthesis-making, to educating the beneficiaries on the proper use of their prosthesis, especially in ambulation,” they noted.

They added that the fraternity was able to help amputees from various parts of Metro Manila and several provinces with the help of non-governmental organizations.

The fraternity had been awarded one the Ten Accomplished Youth Organizations and recognized in other award-giving bodies for its various humanitarian activities.

James Montesa, a Medicine student at UP-Manila and service chairman of the fraternity, said the walkathon aimed to showcase how prosthesis could improve the life of amputees.

Montesa said the event also gave the project beneficiaries the chance to meet their benefactors.

A total of 35 amputees joined the walkathon.

“It was just a leisurely walk, a thanksgiving marathon for those who helped the amputees get their prosthesis. We also want to raise awareness that the technology is available and how it can help regain the confidence and functionality of amputees,” he added.

Amputees join Manila ‘walkathon’ 

 

By Charles E. Buban
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 06:39:00 12/22/2008

 

MANILA, Philippines—“And the lame shall walk again … ”

As this biblical passage has promised, the indigents who took part in the 1st National Prosthesis Walkathon on Friday were blessed to walk again even if one or both of their legs were no longer those they were born with.

“I think the most challenging thing was to finally get off the crutches and be able to walk normally again,” said 17-year-old Pamela Erika Pascua, who lost her right leg to cancer.

Pascua was one of the 40 amputee-beneficiaries who participated in the morning walk at Baywalk (fronting Rajah Soliman Park) in Malate, Manila.

The event was organized by four institutions—the Mobility Amputee Support Group of the University of the Philippines’ Mu Sigma Phi fraternity, Walking Free Program of the Physicians for Peace, Prosthetics Service of UP-Philippine General Hospital (PGH) and Rotary International District 3810.

It was the UP-PGH Prosthetics Service that footed the P500,000 bill for Pascua’s prosthesis.

Fortunate

“I was fortunate in that for my very first prosthesis, they shouldered everything, including my over-a-year of rehabilitation,” said Pascua, who hails from Bacolod City and temporarily resides at P. Ocampo (formerly Vito Cruz) Street in Malate.

“My family would not have been able to afford such an expensive device, and was just lucky to be referred to this group at PGH,” she said.

“My family would not have been able to afford such an expensive device, and was just lucky to be referred to this group at PGH,” she said.

A below-the-knee prosthesis usually costs around P80,000. The above-the knee type is more expensive, with costs ranging from P120,000 to around P1 million depending on the material used (titanium, carbon fiber or ceramics).

But according to Lyne Abanilla, past district governor of Rotary International District 3810 and executive director of Physicians for Peace Philippines, the prosthesis prepared by UP-PGH for indigents only costs between P10,000 and P20,000.

“It is quite expensive to purchase a prosthetic leg. But with what the PGH people have developed and the support we are getting from abroad, we can enable more indigent individuals to enjoy greater access to a prosthesis,” Abanilla said, adding:

“Having one is a life-changing experience, indeed.”

More access

She also said those who could well afford it may also get their prosthesis at UP-PGH, but with a higher price because they would have to subsidize an indigent.

To allow people at the grassroots better access to prosthesis use, the four groups have been coordinating with other organizations like the Leader Team, Kapampangan Development Foundation and Operation Blessing, as well as local government units and the social welfare and health departments, where amputee screening and prosthesis service missions are organized and conducted.

“Through this cooperation, we are able to identify barriers to prosthesis use and how to devise a solution [to the problem],” Abanilla said.

One example is the case of 51-year-old Lourdes Lanbunao, who accidentally slipped in her home in Maiinit, Surigao del Norte, in July.

A few hours after the accident, Lanbunao’s legs became numb and were eventually paralyzed.

Through the efforts of her daughter living in Quezon City, Lanbunao was taken to PGH for examination and analysis.

Wheelchair

Immediately after Friday’s Prosthesis Walkathon, Lanbunao received along with several others a special wheelchair that the UP-PGH Prosthetic Service had developed out of a plastic monobloc chair.

“This is just an example of the group’s high-technology-low-cost devices that can be delivered to indigents as they undergo rehabilitation,” Abanilla said.

According to estimates, as many as a million Filipinos have lost a leg or both legs to diabetes (the primary cause), accidents, birth defects and cancer.

Of the number, 60 percent are between 20 and 50 years old—“their most productive years,” Abanilla said. “Because of this, our group organizes preventive education programs in the form of forums on diabetes, as well as early detection modules.”

Around 300 amputees have benefited since the program was established in 2006, Abanilla said.

“The Prosthesis Walkathon served as the beneficiaries’ token of appreciation to their donors,” she said.

“The beneficiaries also showed everyone that they are now ready to reclaim the lives that were abruptly changed by the loss of their limbs.”

 

We can help hundreds more people walk again with your support. If you would like to hold a limb drive or donate a prosthetic limb, please call our office at 757.625.7569 for details. To make an on-line donation to the Walking Free program, click here

Improving Amputee Care in the Philippines

 

On July 14-16th 2008, Physicians for Peace, together with the Department of Othopedics and the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of the Philippines, Manila Health Science Campus, sponsored the first National Convention on Prostheses for Amputees. The three day conference was attended by over 180 doctors, physical therapists, prosthetists, medical students, and patients who demonstrated how working together can improve the treatment process for amputees. The event took place during National Disability Month and featured several workshops and lectures highlighting the importance of a collaborative approach in amputee therapies. Among the presenters were several medical professionals from Virginia and the Hampton Roads area, many of whom are involved in the Physicians for Peace “Walking Free” program, which has been successful in establishing better care conditions for amputees in developing countries. Gail Grisetti, Professor of Physicial Therapy at Old Dominion University, was an invited guest lecturer along with Michael Smith, Certified Prosthetist and Orthotist, owner of American Prosthetics and Orthotics in Chesapeake, VA.  By pooling their expertise, they were able to conduct hands on demonstrations with live amputee patients detailing the importance of communicating as a team when caring for the amputee patient.  This was the fourth trip for PFP volunteer Prosthetist and Orthotists Michael Smith, who was especially fulfilled by giving back to the Filipino countrymen, as his wife is a Filipino with family outside Manila.  Dr. Grisetti has traveled to several countries with PFP and has been active in presenting our team approach to amputee care across the globe. She was especially honored to be asked to travel to the Philippines and remarked upon her return that the Filipino people were the best yet! We thank all the participants who helped make this event a great success!

Walking Free – Mary Grace’s story

Dr. Josephine Bundoc, in-country Director at the Philippines Walking Free clinic has this report:

“Our amputee beneficiaries, especially the children with congenital limb deficiencies, always need follow-up care because they grow taller— but their prostheses do not! One such patient is Mary Grace Vinluan, who has Apert’s syndrome. She has a below-the-knee amputation with incomplete separation of her fingers. We first saw her during our mission in Mindoro in 2005 when she was a 4 year old cranky child, and we were pleasantly surprised to see a very bubbly 7 year old Mary Grace at the Philippines General Hospital!

Her mother was able to raise the 700 pesos roundtrip fare ( from generous neighbors ) to take her daughter from Mindoro to PGH and back. The fare would normally have been 1,400 pesos — but what she did was sit Mary Grace on her lap throughout the 8 hour trip so that they occupied only 1 seat ! We admitted her at the amputee ward so they could save on board & lodging after measuring Mary Grace for a new socket, and then discussed with her mother the possibility of an operation to remove the bony overgrowth that can cause pain when she walks with the prosthesis.


Mary Grace walks with a limp on her prosthetic leg, as it is now shorter than her other, but she has truly transformed from being the cry-baby in 2005 who refused to be touched or even utter a word! Despite her limping gait, she confidently moves around with her prosthesis, starts a conversation with anyone, and the smile on her face never wears off —- all because, according to her mother, she was able to gain independence with her prosthesis to play and mingle with her friends! I wonder what she will be like 10 years from now. She says she wants to be a teacher —- well, I bet she will make a very good one!”

You can help children like Mary Grace get the care they need and replacement prosthetics to fit their growing bodies. To find out more about how to support the Physicians for Peace Walking Free Program, Click here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Report from the Caribbean – Day 6

Volunteer photographers Stephen Katz and Chris Tyree continue their work in the Dominican Republic.
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“Rafino, 49, didn’t travel much beyond a two or three block radius in the Vietnam Barrio of Santo Domingo – named that because it’s like a war-zone – after he lost his leg 17 years ago in a motorbike accident. Local doctors tried to use a traditional method to save the leg, which later became gangrenous and was ultimately removed. A couple of years later he lost his wife too. She walked out on him, leaving him to care for their two boys. One is mute.

When I first met Rafino just over two years ago, he was seated on a paint can in front of his mother’s green shack, where he and the boys eventually moved. His entire world, and that of his children, existed in one room. No bathroom. No kitchen. Just two tattered, stained mattresses with small piles of clothing and other odds-and-ends cluttering a space no more than 10 feet by 8 feet. It was his prison and his palace.

I made several photographs of Rafino perched on the rusted can that afternoon, before I even noticed he was missing his left leg. As I walked closer I smiled. He didn’t return the smile, but nodded his head ever so slightly. Though at the time he was 47-years-old, deep lines – a dried riverbed – across his face made him look 58.

He struggled to stand as I extended my hand, steadying himself and shaking at the same time. Although he was on a concrete step he was still several inches shorter than me. I asked Ramon to inquire whether or not he had a prosthetic. We were both shocked when he pulled out an artificial leg he had made himself with wood, the type of rubber used as a moisture barrier on roofs and a piece cannibalized from a partial prosthetic leg a friend had found. He demonstrated the contraption for us. Still his gate was labored, with a severe, awkward limp. Ramon took down his information, promising to arrange for him to be fit for an artificial leg. I’m sure Rafino wondered if this was just another hollow promise.

Yesterday, Ramon, Chris and I spent the day following around a small group of PFP’s Resource Mothers. The program is designed to educate 15 to 19-years-olds, in the first sixteen months of their pregnancy, to adopt lifestyles that ensure a successful birth and healthy baby. The Resource Mothers themselves are members of the community and have children of their own.

As we approached Arelis’s home – one of PFP’s nine Resource Mothers – Ramon called out to me “you remember the man with the leg he made for himself?” I nodded. “He lives just here,” pointing to the green shack I quickly recalled. As we parked just a few yards away, Rafino walked out. Walked out. No limp. No faltering. As his gaze adjusted to the bright Dominican sun and fell on Ramon he immediately threw up his hands, smiling like a child would smile at a brightly colored balloon. Before long the man of so few words just two years ago couldn’t wait to share with Chris and I how the mobility of the new leg has changed his life. Today, instead of scratching together a living and begging for money, Rafino collects and recycles bottles. He also earns money by shining shoes. Fancy shoes. The kind worn by people who don’t live in the barrio. Both tasks made possible by something most of us take for granted – walking. Walking free.”

Report from the Caribbean – Day 5

The continuing experiences of volunteer photographers Stephen M. Katz and Chris Tyree, as they travel in the Dominican Republic and Haiti for PFP.
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“Would anyone fall in love with her? Could anybody find her attractive? Should she even dare to dream of marrying one day? All questions familiar to many young women, especially those disfigured the way Ireline was.

At the age of twelve the lively Dominican held her brother’s waist tightly as the two zigzagged through traffic. It’s a common site. And the type of accident they were involved in is all too common as well. With roadways on which two lanes swell into four and driving is more sport than transportation, cars and motorbikes are foes. The emergency room at the public hospital in Santo Domingo sees nearly as many amputations as appendicitis. The fingers on Ireline’s brother’s right hand were severed and Ireline was flung into traffic. When she awoke in the hospital, her left leg was gone.

The barrios of the Dominican Republic are difficult to manage with two legs. Steep concrete stairways – tentacles stretching from the busy roadways above – creep down hills often slick with oily water and sewage, to shacks the poor call home. Pathways pitted with ruts and strewn with rocks wind through a dizzying maze. As a child going to school, and later an adult searching for work, Ireline navigated the obstacle course on a pair of rusting crutches.

But the day Ireline sturdied herself on those crutches and walked into the Asociacion Dominicana de Rehabilitacion (ADR) – the orthopedics and prosthetics center where PFP runs its Walking Free program – not one, but two dreams came true. She has been fitted for a prosthetic leg and eagerly waits for the day she can once again walk on two legs or dance the Pachete and not rely on bracing herself with her arms and hands. And with her arms free, she can walk proudly while holding the hand of her husband Monely. The athletic man, himself a double amputee, stole her heart when he worked in the back room of ADR making orthopedic shoes for children.
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More ‘Walking Free’ in the News

More personal stories about how the Physicians for Peace Walking Free program is changing lives were featured in the Philippine Daily Inquirer last week:Click to read.

Three Stories of Success in the Philippines

Over the past few months, our Walking Free program in the Philippines has been in high gear, with story after story about people walking for the first time after being born without limbs, or losing one or both legs to injury or disease. The champions of this program have been Dr. Josephine “Penny” Bundoc and her husband, Dr. Rafael “Peppy” Cruz Bundoc. Dr. Penny Bundoc is professor and Chairman of the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the University of the Philippines, and her husband is an orthopedic surgeon at the same institution. With training they have received from Physicians for Peace volunteers, they have reached out to the amputee community in the Philippines, not only providing treatment and rehabilitation, but sharing the joy these patients experience as they learn to walk again. Here are just a few of the stories the Bundocs have sent us recently:

Two Brave Young Women, Stepping Forward Together

When little Cathy Itulde was referred for treatment by Physicians for Peace-trained medical professionals in the Philippines, she was incredibly lucky! Cathy had been born with a clubfoot on the right leg and knee disarticulation on the left. Brought to the Philippines General Hospital (PGH), she received treatment for her clubfoot, and was measured for a prosthesis, which she would be fitted for a month later. While undergoing treatment, Cathy was lucky to cross paths with another patient, Lea Medrano.

Leah, a teenage girl who had “walked” for the past 15 years in a kneeling position due to her missing leg, had recently been treated by the same caregivers, and is now a leader of the Amputee Support Group, where she assists in amputee data-base input and, most importantly, brings sunshine and hope to amputees and their families and caregivers.

Cathy hails from Antique (in the Visayas region of the Philippines) and her trip to PGH with her mother and youngest brother (who had to go with them because no one was available to care for him) was sponsored by the Rotary Club of Manila San Miguel.

All throughout Cathy’s surgery & hospitalization for correction of her clubfoot, Lea was by her side, and there were hugs, kisses and smiles all around when it was time for Cathy to go home – for one month only. Then she will return to be fitted for her new prosthetic leg!

Roxanne Navarette Finally Walks Free

Born without a leg, Roxanna Navarette refused to walk most of her childhood life. With the assistance of the Rotary Club of Clark, the Philippines, a very shy and withdrawn Roxanna was brought to PGH by her mother on piggy-back! She was one of the first children to be seen by the newly-Physicians for Peace-trained medical professionals at the PGH.

With just 2 weeks of training with her new Jaipur prosthesis, Roxanne was upgraded to a Physician for Peace-provided endoskeleton prosthesis, which was sponsored by the Kapampangan Development Foundation, an organization in the Philippines assisting amputees.

“We can not help but be overwhelmed by the confident, poised, independently-standing Roxanne beside her mother,” said one of the volunteers treating the young girl. Roxanne’s mother, to this day, is very thankful because with Roxanne physically & psychologically walking free, she too is “walking free” of Roxanne’s burden and is now able to increase the family’s income.

Marching Forward with the Help of the Military!

October 20, 2007 was another eventful day for the Physicians for Peace Walking Free program in the Philippines. The program has added a whole new group of members to the growing family of the Amputee Support Group — no less than brave men in uniform!
Philippine soldiers came down from their duties in the mountains of Bataan, laid down their guns and rolled up their sleeves to assist PFP Walking Free student volunteers, Rotarians and Operation Blessing staff in assembling wheelchairs for the disabled receiving treatment in the Bataan towns of Mariveles & Orion. The PFP Walking Free team had their hands full screening 35 amputees, measuring 23 stumps and assembling the initial 10 wheelchairs!

Each mission truly reinforces the existence of the Walking Free project…. a proof of how service to others can be highly contagious when the fruits of its benefits are so very laudable!