By Ellen Interlandi | Stakeholder Relations Officer, CSC
WHO WE ARE CSC aims to improve the quality of life for disabled poor people by providing free or low-cost rehabilitation surgery. Integral to CSC’s mission is a program of training local surgeons and hospital staff by international experts – focusing on the development of sustainable surgical services.
A Future Transformed for a Young Man with a Birth DefectMeet Theara, a 19-year-old student from Kampong Cham in Cambodia. His parents are farmers and grow rice and vegetables. He enjoys reading Khmer literature, and when he graduates from high school, he would like to attend a university to study law. Theara was born with bilateral clubfeet, a condition in which the foot is twisted out of shape. He has difficulty walking and cannot wear shoes. His parents consulted with a local hospital when he was born, but they could not access care due to lack of money. If left untreated, his disability would be worse as he aged, which would make it hard for Theara to walk at all. He says his condition made it difficult to join in games or keep up with other kids, and stigma prevented him from socializing or forming friendships. Theara thought he would never walk normally but was assured by the expertise of the Children’s Surgical Centre surgical team, who performed a corrective surgical procedure on his legs and placed external fixators on both feet to ensure that they become properly aligned. He has been recovering in the hospital for several weeks and will keep the frames on both legs for eight to twelve weeks as his tendons heal. Theara will receive rehabilitative therapy to adjust his gait and increase strength and range of motion. Surgeons are hopeful he will recover without any pain or walking dysfunction; he looks forward to fewer symptoms from his condition and hopes to keep up with school and realize his dream of becoming a lawyer. Theara's mother said: we are relieved that Theara will have the opportunity to walk normally, be like other young men his age, finish school, and have a good life. Thank you to the donors who helped to pay for his surgery because we could not afford the care.
We are guided by the needs of our patients and strive to help them achieve health and meaningful change in their lives.
THE ASK
Whatever you can give, please know we are grateful to receive it! Little acts of kindness can collectively make a big difference. Thank you for your continued support and for helping us through what continues to be several challenging years.
Please visit https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/build-hospital-wing-for-25000-disabled-cambodians/ to learn more about how you can help change the lives of thousands of Cambodians each year.
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By Ellen Interlandi | Stakeholder Relations Officer
By Ellen Interlandi | Stakeholder Relations Officer
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