World Pediatric Project (WPP), in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, will be conducting a free scoliosis clinic this Sunday, Nov. 3, for persons up to the age of 21 years old.
The Scoliosis Mission will evaluate children with different spine issues.
Scoliosis is a sideways curvature of the spine where the spine is usually “S” or “C? Shaped. It occurs most often during the growth spurt just before puberty.
The scoliosis mission will be led by Dr. Chad Aarons, from Tuckahoe Orthopedics in Richmond, Virginia. This will be Aarons’ fourth trip to St. Vincent with a scoliosis team and the second time as the lead surgeon.
He will be accompanied by a fellow paediatric orthopaedic surgeon, Dr. Ravinder Brar, a paediatric anaesthesiologist Dr. Mike Estes. Ksenia Major, an orthotist will also be travelling with the team for the first time as well as physical therapist Lisa Bebko and veteran WPP medical volunteers.
This is the second scoliosis mission to St. Vincent this year, for WPP. It is expected that approximately 30-40 children will attend clinic and nine surgeries will be performed.
Patients will be coming from Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia, and St. Kitts.
The last scoliosis mission saw 56 children in clinic, including 30 children from across the region and nine surgeries completed throughout the week.
Director of Programs for the Eastern Caribbean, Jackie Browne-King said: “WPP’s purpose is healing children and improving healthcare capacity, the scoliosis surgeries, in particular, are critical for enhancing and transforming body image which is truly a gift of love and purpose.”
Parents and guardians of children who may need to be assessed are asked to contact World Pediatric Project office at 784-451-2989 or 784-494-2751 for more information.
World Pediatric Project offers surgical and diagnostic critical paediatric care to children of the Eastern Caribbean and has been actively working in St. Vincent & the Grenadines since 2002. The work of the WPP and its impact can be followed at www.worldpediatricproject.org.