Nepal's Path to Healing

Left to Right - Binod Sherchan (Senior Consultant, Orthopaedic Surgeon, Coordinator MS Orthopaedics), Justin Gillenwater (USC Co-Director Reconstructive Surgical Education), Amber Caldwell (Executive Director, IGOT), Ganesh Bahadur Gurung (Vice Chancellor, NAMS National Academy of Medical Sciences)

NEPAL'S PATH TO HEALING

The Damage One year ago today an earthquake of 7.8 magnitude rocked Nepal causing over 8,000 deaths, injuring more than 21,000 people and causing extensive damage to the existing health infrastructure. Due to collapsing buildings, falling objects, etc the majority of injuries were orthopaedic in nature.

IGOT's Immediate Response In response to the earthquake IGOTs leadership reached out to the 11 Nepalese orthopaedic surgeons who participated in IGOTs International Summit and other IGOT programs. While safe and actively operating, these surgeons were in urgent need of critical medical supplies. IGOT immediately contacted our partners at Direct Relief International who delivered two freight airplanes worth of medical supplies, medicines and equipment to the institutions represented by IGOTs Nepalese partners.

Your Support in Action You also jumped into action!
Your generous donations to IGOT in the wake of the disaster funded the first stage of our SMART Course program (Surgical Management and Reconstructive Training Course). With your support, IGOT visited Nepal in February to plan a custom course specifically designed to treat recovering victims from the lingering surgical problems resulting from disasters like this. IGOT's Long Term Strategy This partnership formed with the Nepal National Academy of Medical Sciences (NAMS) and the National Trauma Center was a deeply exciting moment.

The SMART Course curriculum was developed with local leaders to focus on topics that save limbs from amputations, restore function, and better prepare Nepalese health care providers for future disasters.

The course will take place this November over two days with over 60 attendees from all over Nepal, IGOT will support travel for surgeons from the farthest reaches of the country. The Nepal SMART Course Co-Directors are in San Francisco this week! Sponsored through IGOTs Global Scholars Program Dr. Rishi Bisht and Dr. Binod Sherchan will attend the San Francisco International Trauma Course. The academic conference reviews current treatment trends and opinions in orthopaedic trauma that can be readily applied to their clinical practice. Keep an eye on our Facebook page and your inbox for a personal message from these 2 gentlemen during their visit.

Your support can bring programs like these to new partner sites across the globe. Please donate today.