In Uganda, at the CoRSU hospital, a project launched by Cbm Italia helps an innovative laboratory to create artificial arts for the rehabilitation of orthopedic disabilities
Josephine is five years old. She was born with a double malformation of the lower limbs: the clubfoot right and a congenital amputation to the left leg. Any movement was forbidden to her. Arriving at the CoRSU, the little girl was first operated on the club foot and later, thanks to the courage and will of her mother, received a 3D prosthesis for the left leg. Today Josephine is a happy child, her life has totally changed and she walks without problems.
Polo of excellence
The Corsican (Comprehensive Rehabilitation Services of Uganda for People with Disabilities) is a medical rehabilitation and specialist surgery hospital supported by Cbm Italia in Uganda. For eleven years it has been a center of excellence in East Africa for the treatment and rehabilitation of orthopedic disabilities, especially of children. It is one of the many “miracles” in a land that was once tormented by tribal hatred and has now become a veritable laboratory of technological innovation in the health sector. The hospital, 33 kilometers south of the capital Kampala, is specialized in surgery and rehabilitation activities. These are flanked by the staff training and a community-based rehabilitation project, which supports participation e the inclusion of people with disabilities in their communities of origin through collaboration with existing health, educational, training and social services. 80% of CoRSU patients are children, who come from Uganda and neighboring countries, South Sudan and Chad. Since its foundation in 2006, the center has built more than 48 thousand surgical operations on children and brought rehabilitation activities to 72,000 patients, most of whom are children.
The “Print the innovation” project
And at CoRSU the project is in full swing «Print the innovation» which is part of Cbm’s «Break the Cycle» campaign. Thanks to the support of the Cariplo Foundation and the Compagnia di San Paolo Foundation, the project supports a state-of-the-art orthopedic laboratory which – thanks to 3D printers for the mass production of prostheses and insoles, but also of protective visors – guarantees greater autonomy and economic sustainability in finding innovative and quality medical materials and equipment. Furthermore, the personalization of the prostheses allows to keep the individual and his needs at the center of the project. In fact, for patients who leave the hospital and return to the most remote villages of Uganda, the reliability of the prostheses must be maximum. With the 3D printer, the entire production process is simplified: a tablet allows to obtain the digital scan of the abutment. The image is acquired through software in the computer and from there transmitted to the printer. The prosthesis is obtained within a couple of hours. This allows a reduction of costs and time: a patient stays hospitalized for two to three days, instead of two or three weeks. The technology also allows the patient a wide range of choices: from aids made with plastic materials, to those in resin. In recent times, the use of recycled and certified plastic material. You have to make sure that the prosthesis is really good: whoever goes to the CoRSU then returns to the village. And it is not certain that he can return.
September 25, 2021 (change September 25, 2021 | 18:11)
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