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The Gift of Mobility
Operation Walk-Utah’s Trip to San Salvador
August 2011
When Dr. Aaron Hofmann started the Utah chapter of Operation Walk a few years ago, he imagined doing free surgeries in third-world countries with a team of volunteers. That hope became a reality when in just three days in May, Dr. Hofmann – a professor of orthopedic surgery and director of the Center for Precision Joint Replacement at Salt Lake Regional Medical Center – performed 44 joint surgeries on disadvantaged patients in San Salvador, El Salvador. He was assisted by 42 volunteer surgeons, nurses and scrub technicians from Salt Lake Regional Medical Center, University of Utah Hospital and Saint Francis Hospital in Tulsa, Okla.
“It was a fantastic trip that allowed us to meet the two goals of Operation Walk-Utah – provide free joint replacement surgeries for those who need them and teach local medical staff, residents, medical students and other faculty in San Salvador how to perform them,” Dr. Hofmann said.
Operation Walk is a private, not-for-profit, volunteer medical service organization that provides free joint replacement surgeries for patients with disabling arthritis in developing countries and in the United States. Operation Walk also educates in-country orthopedic surgeons, physical therapists and other health care professionals about advanced treatments and surgical techniques for diseases of the hip and knee joints.
The service expedition to San Salvador required months of planning, with Dr. Hofmann and his team (led by Julie Canfield, RN, from University Hospital) making two preparation trips to meet with the U.S. ambassador to El Salvador and the country’s new minister of health. They also met with the director of a local San Salvador hospital, Dr. Alfredo Galan, who had practiced in the United States for 25 years prior to returning to his home country. Dr. Galan volunteered to be their host and was also a good friend and former student of the minister of health.
Working with Dr. Galan, Operation Walk-Utah volunteers screened 250 applicants to find the 44 most in need of surgery. Dr. Hofmann and his team also worked with various manufacturers to secure donations of the joint implants and sterile supplies needed for the surgeries.
“Each of these patients has an inspiring story,” Dr. Hofmann said. “One woman didn’t have bus fare for the entire trip to the hospital, so she rode her horse for three days getting half of the way to San Salvador, and then she paid bus fare donated by her neighbors to get the rest of the way. After the surgery, she asked us how long before she could ride a horse. We told her to rest for a few weeks, but she said that wasn’t possible because she needed her horse to get home.”
“Another memorable patient we call the ‘lunch lady’ because we met her during lunch on the last day. This woman asked if we had any openings in the surgery schedule, and there happened to be a last-minute cancellation. After a quick trip home to make some preparations, she arrived by bus back at the hospital at 4:30 p.m. and had her operation at 6 p.m. – the last patient of the day. We met her at lunch, and she had a new knee by dinner time.”
Working day and night for three days, Operation Walk-Utah volunteers were always training local medical staff during the surgeries.
“The resources provided by volunteers and generous donors can do a lot of good,” Dr. Hofmann said. “At one point, Dr. Galan told us we’d need to pay the nursing staff to stay overnight. We were concerned because we thought that could be extremely expensive. Then he explained that $15 would cover an entire 12-hour shift. We hired nine nurses during our stay.”
Although each surgery trip out of the country requires up to $100,000 in cash in addition to the donated supplies, Dr. Hofmann plans to make it an annual event. Operation Walk-Utah is also planning to participate in Operation Walk USA.
“On Dec. 2 and 3, Salt Lake Regional Medical Center and Operation Walk-Utah will devote those days to providing free joint replacement procedures to those without the financial resources to pay for them,” Dr. Hofmann said. “This will be a coordinated Operation Walk USA event with all 17 chapters participating. We expect to do approximately 10 to 15 procedures in Salt Lake City that weekend. Those interested can contact us through our website at www.operationwalkutah.org.”
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