Next Mission: Namibia

In June 2012, Dr. Bruce Lehnert -- medical director of the International Extremity Project -- is taking an elite group of U.S. and foreign physicians to Namibia in South West Africa. 

While there, Dr. Lehnert will meet with Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba and Dr. Richard M. Kamwi, the Minister of Health, to organize an ongoing medical presence. 

The 2010 Mission: In Video

The International Extremity Project's December 2010 mission to Can Tho, from IEP cinematographer Flecher Fleudujon.

International Extremity Project - Music Video

Footage from the 2007 mission to Can Tho, Vietnam, set to music. Stay tuned for 2010 footage!

Medical Team Thanks

2011 IEP Team Doctors:
Drs Meir Nyska, Jonah Mullens, Bruce Lehnert,
and Jeff Spanko

I wanted to thank all of our donors that made our trip possible. Without them we would not have been able to help all of the needy people of the Mekong Delta. ~Jonah Mullens, DPM

Heading Home

We are done, all in all the IEP team performed  37 surgeries.  We have donated most of the equipment to Can Tho General Hospital and have packed up a few of our essentials--mostly manual surgery instruments. 

This has been the most successful mission I have completed in my 12 years of work in Vietnam.  We are already planning the next trip--it was just that good this time.

A big thank you to all our donors.~Bruce Lehnert

Finishing Up in Can Tho

It's the last morning in Can Tho and Jane and I just returned from rounding on our post-op patients. Our last patient coincidentally was the first person we began our screenings with on the first morning. It was a great way to round out our trip.

Everyone is doing well, and the expressions on the faces of our patients and their families is very uplifting and gratifying. The past two weeks have been full of various challenges that we were able to overcome with some ingenuity and cooperation between our team and the local staff. It has been an experience that I will never forget. The procedures that we performed were nothing short of miracles for many of these patients. 

The attending physicians on our team have also been very knowledgeable and have shared their experience with us in so many ways. It is a very collaborative learning environment that they have built through the IEP missions. I am very proud to have been a part of the team.  The nurses have also supported us greatly throughout the two-week period. We joke that they are like the mother hens of the group. 

This has been a very eye-opening experience. I have a great respect for our profession and for everyone who takes time out of their busy schedule to make this mission happen. I hope that I can be a part of the team again on future missions. 

Thank you International Extremity Project and Can Tho General Hospital! ~Diane M. Koshimune, DPM-PGY3

Scenes from the Operating Room

Dr. Jeffrey Spanko, getting ready to
make a difference.

Patients receive the best care from a
collaborative, international team.

The pictures here show a glimpse of what has happened over the past week in Can Tho. But there's so much beyond the images. Logistically, performing 26 surgeries in five days has required Herculean mental and physical effort from the medical team. The local support teams have had to support the scheduling, supplying, staffing, and care for the patients.

Some procedures are so complex that they require several of the surgeons working in concert to provide the complex solutions the patient needs. As you look at the images consider the efforts these people have put forth to bring their special skills and gifts to people in need.

Many hands working together.

At a surface level, it's easy to say "they're changing lives." But consider that statement and the environment in which the patients and their families live. In the rural environments from which many of these patients have traveled to get to Can Tho, physical abilities and strength are a far greater necessity than most of us can imagine. The changes the IEP team is making in the lives of these families is also far greater than most of us can comprehend from the comfort of our living rooms, scrolling down a web page to spend a few minutes with these pictures.~Kim Austin

Dr. Meir Nyska outside the OR.

The OR is where the miracles begin.

Drs. Mullens and Koshimune casting a young patient's leg.

Complex procedures require an
experienced team approach.

Drs. Spanko and Lehnert in the OR.

The team reviews cases in the recovery area
to outline post-op care.

Leaving Can Tho

We depart Can Tho in an hour. And I am very sad to leave. Working with IEP and the Vietnamese doctors here has been one of the greatest experiences of my life. I have learned so much through this mission. Being Vietnamese-American has certainly brought a new dimension to this experience.

Words can't express all my feelings but I hope the pictures speak for themselves. I encourage everyone to participate in some type of charity work because not only are you giving, but you are definitely receiving much more in return.

Thank you to the International Extremity Project team and to the team at Bệnh viện Đa khoa Trung ương - Cần Thơ for the opportunity of a lifetime.~Jane Nguyen

Memorable Case: Ectrodactyly

One of the most memorable cases of this mission will very likely be the case of a young man with what is often called "Lobster-Claw Syndrome" due to the visual aspect of the resulting deformities. From Wikipedia's definition of ectrodactyly:

Ectrodactyly, sometimes referred to as the “Lobster-Claw Syndrome” involves the deficiency or absence of one or more central digits of the hand or foot and is also known as split hand/split foot malformation (SHFM). The hands and feet of people with ectrodactyly are often described as "claw-like" and may include only the thumb and one finger (usually either the little finger, ring finger, or a syndactyly of the two) with similar abnormalities of the feet.

This is a case where the before and after pictures are dramatic, but the images are only one view of the story. What we see in photographs is far less dramatic than the positive change possible in this young man's life after Monday's surgery.

 

Reviewing post-op films.

Letter from a Patient's Family

Dear Doctors, Nurses, Donors, and the members of the USA group coming to Cantho Hospital to help operate the numerous clubfoot patients in the Mekong Delta,

Thank you greatly for your kindness to us. In fact, you have given us an unforgettable memory by operating such many clubfoot patients, especially my niece Nguyen Thanh Loan, 36 years old.

You can’t imagine how happy she is after being operated, though now she feels a great pain from surgery, but I think it is normal after such an operation. I can see on her face a great joy thinking she will be able to walk correctly soon. She herself suggested I write to you and thank you for her.

You can also see all the happy faces in this room B512 tonight with the operated clubfoot patients and their families. I am really touched and I share their happiness.

Thank you so much indeed for helping the poor people here. You have returned them the joy to become normal as other people. Those children will be able to go to school as other children. Those adults will be able to find a suitable job and a happy life as others!  

How wonderful you are!  How wonderful God has done great things for us through you!  May you be always blessed.  May God reward you and grant you happiness, success, and all you need for your life. 

As Christmas and the New Year are coming, I wish you Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2011, to you, to your family and to your Country of USA.

Sincerely yours,
Sister Mary Alexandra
NGUYEN THI NGHI