Through a combination of grants from Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, American Jewish World Service, Child Relief International, and Grapes for Humanity/US, BRAC will soon be opening a Limb and Brace Center in Haiti. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimates that the number injured by the January 12th earthquake in Haiti earthquake is between 200,000 and 250,000 people. The number of people who needed amputations as a result of their injuries is estimated to be between 2,000 and 4,000. BRAC has over a decade of experience running a limb and brace center in Bangladesh and will leverage that knowledge to provide low cost ICRC approved prosthetic and orthotic services to 1,500 Haitians in the first year of operations.
By providing artificial limbs and braces to the poor, especially in this time of extreme need and desperation, BRAC can help to reduce the burden on the families of physically disabled individuals by increasing their ability to participate in daily life and other social and economic activities, thereby allowing Haitian citizens to begin rebuilding their nation. BRAC’s Limb and Brace Center will also provide information, education, and counseling service to the disabled and their family members.
Through partnerships with Handicap International, Partners in Health and other health care providers, BRAC will receive appropriate referrals to ensure that low income amputees receive service, particularly recent earthquake victims. BRAC staff will prepare appropriate materials in Creole, French and English to notify medical staff and the general public about the Center such as leaflets, posters, and if needed, advertisements in the newspapers, magazines, and on radio.
Given the shortage in Haiti of trained physical therapists, BRAC-trained specialists have been deployed to provide training to the Haitian staff in physiotherapy. Within two years the center will be Haitian run and staffed, in addition to manufacturing and repairing prosthetics and orthotics on-site. BRAC is also partnering with volunteers from the US and Diaspora community in its rehabilitation efforts.