Burns and cleft palette among children in Ethopia focus of RESTOR
Posted by Peter Roaf
on Jul 07, 2015
RESTOR International is a Rotarian non-profit humanitarian organization providing free reconstructive surgery to disadvantaged children and adults in developing countries. An 18-year-old boy in Ethiopia, disfigured by severe burns since age 4 after falling into a cooking fire at his home, received reconstructive surgery and now can close his mouth and one of his eyes.
The focus of the surgery is on cleft lip and palate anomalies, burn contractures and other disfiguring and disabling conditions.
[Founded in 2004 as Rotaplast Canada, affiliated with Rotaplast International, RESTOR International under its new name is all Canadian.]
A severely burned girl before and after surgeryRESTOR has provided financial and volunteer support or facilitation for missions to the Philippines, India, China, Chile, Vietnam and Ethiopia. It just completed its tenth mission and the fourth to Ethiopia, sponsored in part by: Rotary District 5060, $30,000 matched 100% by The Rotary Foundation; Rotary Clubs of Kelowna, $5,000 and of Okanagan Mission, $5,100, Kelowna Capri, $3,000, Kelowna Sunrise, $2,000, Penticton, $3,000, Addis Ababa Bole, $300 and all matched 50% by the Rotary Foundation for a grand total of $87,000 from Rotary. RESTOR (Rotaplast Canada) contributed the balance.
On the most recent, 2014 mission to Ehiopia, of the 200 patients came to see the mission team, 144 were admitted and triaged: 71 surgeries; 52 burn reconstructions; 12 cleft lip and palate reconstructions; 7 hysterectomies.
For the medical education sessions provided by the team, 160 attended five formal teaching sessions, with some classes reaching as many as 45 attendees on topics such as Neonatal 
resuscitation, Pediatric airway management, Operating theatre nursing skills and Wound management. Education also involved 110 training hours spent informally with local doctors, nurses and students in the operating room, post-op recovery and on the wards.
resuscitation, Pediatric airway management, Operating theatre nursing skills and Wound management. Education also involved 110 training hours spent informally with local doctors, nurses and students in the operating room, post-op recovery and on the wards.To start a burn unit, as a new part of the RESTOR mission, six of the more complicated contracture patients were referred to Norwegian surgeon, Dr. Einar Eriksen, for surgery in Addis Ababa.
Burn injuries are one of the most common injuries in Africa. The main cause is frequently unprotected fireplaces and ground level cooking. Children are most often affected. Burn survivors frequently develop various degrees of handicaps and deformities which impose a heavy burden on the families and society. The main reasons for this tragic outcome after one is burned, are a lack of designated hospital facilities, or available emergency care, a shortage of supplies and surgical equipment, as well as an inadequate number of trained and motivated staff.
Burns and cleft lip and palette repair were the main operations that needed to be done. Some uterine prolapse repair alsoWays You Can Help through RESTOR
- partnerships with Rotary clubs, corporations and individual donors to continue our work
- Rotary clubs can choose RESTOR International as their global project and help fund a mission or purchase medical equipment.
- volunteer: in a non-medical role, or plastic surgeons, anesthesiologists, pediatricians, operating and recovery room nurses – encourage nurses and doctors in our community to participate in a mission.
Past President of the Rotary Club of Kelowna Gord Savage (left) is thanked for this presentation by Peter Podovinikoff