The ongoing hand surgery and restorative camp at the National Referral Hospital is bringing back the lost smiles of many Bhutanese. The 12-day camp is being conducted by a team of volunteer plastic and reconstructive surgeons from Australia and New Zealand.
Pasang Dorji, an eight-year-old boy from Trongsa, is among the many people visiting the camp for a hand reconstructive surgery. A contact with an exposed electrical wire left him with a badly burned left hand fingers. With time, all fingers healed except for the ring finger, which was injured severely.
The injury has been a cause of embarrassment for Passang with friends often subjecting him to ridicule. “Friends joked that it would be uncomfortable to shake hands with my son because of his crooked finger,” said Passang’s mother Leki Dema.
Passang underwent hand surgery twice before but his mother was not very satisfied with the result. So, when they heard about the ongoing hand surgery and restorative camp, the mother and the son came to give another shot at it. Much to their delight, the third surgery was a success.
The hand surgery and restorative camp was a blessing for Birkha Bdr Gurung as well. Doctors successfully operated on his right thumb, which he broke some 12 years ago. “I was in a lot of pain. I went to the hospital but I was told it cannot be treated or operated on. Later, one of the doctors called and told me about the camp.”
The camp has also attracted people with problems other than hand injuries. Tshering Pem Tamang, an eleven month old infant has a dark spot on her jaw. Her parents said the spot first appeared when their child turned two months. Since then, it has been growing in size.
The hand surgery and restorative camp is organized twice a year to provide reconstructive surgery and to assist Bhutanese surgeons in learning and improving their skills. It is conducted by the Ministry of Health in collaboration with the Interplast Australia and New Zealand. The camp ends on 28th of this month.
