Under difficult conditions Damaris Schubert administers physiotherapeutic post-operative treatment in Haiti. Photo: humedica
Haiti: sustainable medical aid by means of physiotherapy
by Damaris Schubert, 2010/04/22
“Now I have been here in Port au Prince for seven weeks. I am responsible for physiotherapeutic measures when it comes to the post-operative treatment of earthquake victims. And I would never have thought how important my work here would be.
In the first week of March she was able to walk for the first time supported by crutches. After no more than two steps, however, she was completely exhausted and had to sit down again. Only two weeks later she made a distance of about 50 meters without a break and without any assistance.
After six weeks she started walking without crutches. Her eyes were bright with pride when she succeeded.
I also think of Stephen who did not want to move his knee at first, due to strong pain and fear. After careful treatment and some encouraging words, he has in the meantime achieved to bend his knee to a right angle.
Now Stephen is eagerly practicing by himself, since he has seen the large progress which can be made in only a short time. His aim is to be able to care for his two-year-old daughter by himself; the mother of the child is among the about 222,000 victims of the earthquake.
And then there is six-year-old Rudolph: due to a wound stretching from the upper arm to the wrist, he has grown scar tissue thick enough to prevent him almost completely from moving his elbow. Furthermore he suffers from neuroparalysis in his hand and foot and can neither actively move his wrist nor his fingers.
After some days of intensive treatment and building a self-made splint, it is now possible to move his hand passively. Also the function of his foot is slowly recovering.
The liveliness of the little boy seems like a miracle when thinking of the fact that he had to spend two days below the ruins of his house without any water – lying next to his dead grandmother. His mother could only keep up contact to him by means of calls.
There has been a lot of progress during the last seven weeks in many aspects. All the patients are now able to move enough to leave their beds in which they had had to lie continuously for several weeks. Most of them are able to move without assistance and many of them are really ambitious and do their exercises by themselves.
The people are very grateful although therapy often means pain and hard work both for the patient and the therapist. They like me and welcome my advice.
I myself reach my bodily limits on a regular basis. Heat is worst within the tents and since many treatments have to be done while kneeling on the floor, I frequently have to struggle against circulatory collapse.
After targeted treatment, also six-year-old Rudolph has recovered to a large extent. Photo:humedica
And if I then have to mobilise patients while they are lying on the floor, patients who have a stiff knee, are in pain and who have lain in their beds for several weeks and hence have hardly any muscle power left, I am facing special challenges again and again: improvisation and creativity are high in demand.
Last week I experienced a very special moment, when the first three amputation patients were fitted their prosthetics. Even depressive Mackenson had a smile on his face. Melicienne clearly gained new hope of one day being able to continue her studies. Within only a few days we could see large progress and this is a success for our entire team.
I will soon go home now. My heart is full of wonderful and sad stories. I have seen many laughing and crying faces and when I will have to say goodbye to my patients in three days time, I will leave them with a heart full of gratitude.
Those people here in Haiti have shown me how you can believe in the Almighty God and his love even after the most terrible blow of fate and how you can get up and walk ahead once more in your trust in God.
Kind regards from Haiti,
Damaris Schubert”
