Amputees to benefit from latest technology at Davao facility

By ICRC
March 30, 2012

MANILA  –  Amputees can now walk proudly with durable and affordable prostheses made possible by the use of the latest technology at Davao Jubilee Foundation (DJF).

With support from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), DJF opened its newly constructed workshop today as it shifts to state-of-the-art technology. The workshop is now fully equipped to produce lightweight artificial legs and braces made of polypropylene, instead of heavier fibreglass.

"Polypropylene is relatively cheap and easy to process. It is versatile and recyclable, and has a long shelf life. It also requires few other materials in the manufacturing process," said Jean-François Gallay, the ICRC's regional physical rehabilitation project manager. "The technology that we use makes it possible to adapt assistive devices more precisely to the needs of each individual patient, which makes the devices more comfortable to use."

"This new technology will be of significant help to patients as they regain their independence and dignity," added Mr Gallay.

He said that production time using the new technology will be considerably shorter and that DJF will therefore be able to accommodate more patients.

The ICRC has been providing DJF with support enabling it to enhance its prosthetic services, which are one of the main needs of people physically disabled by injuries resulting from armed conflict. Last year, the ICRC built a gait training area where patients could practise using their new prostheses.

DJF is a non-profit organization that provides physical rehabilitation services to amputees and other people with disabilities. It mainly helps people from Mindanao, a region affected by conflict and insecurity. The ICRC has been sending war-wounded patients to the foundation since 2000.

"It’s about time we made the shift to polypropylene technology. It provides better quality devices and serves the needs of patients at reduced cost," said Glorycel Lasquite, a prosthetist-orthotist, one of two DJF staff sponsored by the ICRC for specialized training in Cambodia.

In addition to the assistance it is giving to DJF and its staff, the ICRC is providing financial help for the physical rehabilitation of two minors whose legs were amputated after a bomb blast in 2010. One of them, a six-year-old boy who previously used fibreglass prostheses to walk and run about, has benefited from new and lighter artificial limbs.

The ICRC is a neutral and impartial humanitarian organization that assists and protects victims of armed conflict and other situations of violence. In the Philippines, it visits detainees and assists people displaced by decades of internal armed conflict.

The ICRC provides medicines and surgical items to 22 hospitals throughout Mindanao, and helps cover the equipment needs of key hospitals. In addition, it finances the treatment of individual patients in vulnerable cases.