ST. GEORGE - With 20,000 pounds of medical equipment in tow, St. George resident and orthopedic surgeon Edward Prince teamed with more than 60 medical staff and volunteers who boarded a jumbo jet on May 11 bound for Sonsonate, El Salvador. Their sole mission: Return as many patients as possible to work, health and the tasks of daily life.
"It's a reminder of why we went into the medical field. It's about taking care of patients and trying to give something back to people, providing a service to patients that they would not have otherwise. There's a lot of satisfaction (in that)," said Michael Hoffman, one of the team's orthopedic surgeons from the University of Utah.
In just one short week, Prince, Hoffman and others completed 64 surgeries - primarily hip and knee replacements for adult patients, many with long-term conditions. The medical service mission, coordinated through the non-profit organization Op-eration Walk, is centered on serving developing countries by providing free surgical treatment for patients with disabling arthritis and other debilitating bone and joint conditions, as well as educating resident medical professionals on surgical techniques and advanced treatments for hip and knee joint disease.
"We do (surgeries) in developing countries," said Prince, who described Sonsonate as "war torn, most of it was jungle so they don't have access to sub-specialty care." As a result, many adults have simply lived with medical conditions either developed during childhood or caused by arthritis or accidents - conditions long left untreated. "There were a few patients that the severity of the disease was a lot worse than what we see here in the United states," said Hoffman.
"People just live with this. They don't have any other options," said Prince, who gave an account of his trip last week while showing a power point with detailed images of patients and their conditions. "The deformity that we saw there is much more significant than anything I see here," said Prince as images of El Salvadorian patients flashed by on the screen. A 56-year-old woman, wheelchair-bound for two years; a 26-year-old female born without a hip socket; an adult man with childhood distortion of the tibia resulting in a severely twisted leg that jutted out from his body at a 60-degree angle were part of the presentation.
The doctors were able to remedy all of these cases through surgery, restoring patients to health and the ability to walk again. "Based on the name, Operation Walk, that's our goal. We get them up walking within 24 hours," said Prince.
Working conditions in Sonsonate proved interesting, where armed guards lined the perimeter of the hospital. There were also challenges with operating in an open-air facility. And while Operation Walk members had been in Sonsonate previously, working with the orthopedic surgeon in El Salvador to line up the surgeries, the selection process still "was very hard," said Prince. "Some were too sick, some we simply couldn't get to. We did as many as we could and we got to 64," said Prince, who conducted 20 of the surgeries.
For Sue Duncan, who coordinated the logistics of the trip from communications with the ambassador and hospital to fundraising and flights for the entire team, the mission was a rewarding experience. Duncan who works as the administrative assistant to Dr. Aaron Hofmann of the University of Utah's orthopedic center, who oversees Utah's Operation Walk, enjoyed seeing the medical staff in a different light.
"You see a different side of them when they're volunteering. Most of them have never seen anything like this before. They were on a high because even under the circumstances they were just very humbled by the people, by their living conditions. It's just so exciting to be able to see them walk again, they're just so grateful," she said.
And while not all of El Salvador's residents experience such conditions, Duncan noted those served through Operation Walk were "the people who could never afford" the surgery. "They can't provide for their families, they can't work, they can't walk. These are all adult patients - people who haven't walked in years - and they're able to walk the day after surgery. So they're able to get jobs and provide for their families again," she said.
Surgeons find fulfillment in helping others by sharing their hard-earned skills, she said.
"The surgeons are doing just exactly what they love to do, to operate. They really do want to share their knowledge of surgery, their talents, and this is an opportunity for them to do so," said Duncan. "I've spent 14 years of my training to get to this point, to take care of the people who really need it. After (surgery), it's very touching to see their lives change and (become) happy..." said Prince.
Doctors like Hoffman, who also traveled to Guatemala last November with Operation Walk, say once they've worked with similar organizations, service missions become a regular part of their schedule for the rest of their careers. "It was a wonderful experience. It's an opportunity to give people back their quality of life that they've often been missing for many years," said Hoffman.
Gateway El Salvador
News/Operation Walk Travels to El Salvador
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