African Mission Healthcare Foundation

CONSTRUCTION OF A NEW REHABILITATION CENTRE FOR SURGICAL REHABILITATION PROJECT

INTRODUCTION

Selian and ALMC have a long history of providing surgical care to children with disabilities.  This was originally developed as a project called the Selian Orthopedic Institute.  As more and more plastic surgery and neurosurgery became a part of this ministry, the name was changed to the Rehabilitative Surgery Project. 

These surgeries continue to bring 300 – 400 children a year to our hospitals for corrective surgery.  The great majority of these children will need some time in a protected environment for post operative care.  This has been accommodated to date, in our Plaster House which is located in rented facilities near Selian Lutheran Hospital.

The surgical ministry to disabled children has continued to grow and we now have far too many children coming for operations than can be accommodated in the Plaster House.  Therefore, the Surgical Rehabilitation Project proposes the construction of our own facility.  This paper is a description and rationale for such a project.

THE PLASTER HOUSE CURRENTLY

The ‘Plaster House’ was started in April 2008 as a ‘halfway house’ for children to stay before and after corrective surgery. It was designed as a place where children in plaster casts would be cared for in a clean and supervised environment to ensure the best outcomes from their surgery and rehabilitation.

Some 300 to 400 children are  treated each year at Selian and ALMC under the Rehabilitative Surgery programme.  All of these pass through the Plaster House for varying lengths of time.  Cleft lip surgery may require only  3-4 days whereas, some complicated orthopaedic surgeries will require a stay of several months.

The ‘Plaster House’ programme is housed in the same rented facility it’s been in since it opened, there are three fulltime housemothers to care for the children, a daily cook and a driver who is responsible for the transport of patients, shopping and laundry. At a minimum there are 30 children in the 18 beds at the Plaster House, this explodes to 70 children at the time of Plastic Surgery visits.

THE FUTURE OF THE PLASTER HOUSE           

The ‘Plaster House’ programme has outgrown its current setting. There are many children with disabilities living in the villages and communities around Arusha who will be treated through the expanding Rehabilitative Surgery Programme.  To accomplish this we need to build a new facility.

The ‘Plaster House’ will be a centre that is part of a community, but is a community in itself. It will continue to be a safe and happy place for children to be while they rehabilitate, and a place that continues to be known by the parents as a safe place for them to leave their child for ongoing care and physical therapy.  The ‘Plaster House’ will be known for excellence in rehabilitation and care of patients from all over Tanzania before and after corrective surgery for a disability.

The basic idea for a new ‘Plaster House’ centre is a 40-bed custom designed and built centre.  It will be a simple, yet functional centre, which is both self sufficient and energy efficient. It would be a centre that could care for up to 80 or 100 children at a time – still following the premise of ‘high love-low cost’ healthcare. As a centre it will also be the base for the Rehabilitative Surgery Outreach programme, a place for community and carer education, and a developing rehabilitation therapy centre.

We propose that in the future, the ‘Plaster House’ compound will comprise of the following buildings:

• 4 dorms of 10 beds
• Kitchen/Laundry/Utility for 100 people
• Nursing/Assessment room
• Administration office
• Therapy/Exercise/Classroom space
• Carport and garage for 2 vehicles
• Small workshop for carpentry and sewing
• Meeting space for 70 people
• Stores - food, consumables and other
• Staff housing for 10 staff (with shared facilities)
• Guard hut

COSTS

The construction costs are estimated to be $400,000.  There is considerable interest in this project from our various supporters of such surgery and we feel it is an attainable goal.

REQUEST FOR ASSISTANCE

Constructing a safe haven for children before and after their surgical care is crucial to the ability of the program to continue to provide quality care and surgery to the many children in need.   It is our sincere hope that you will be willing and able to assist in making this wonderful service to the children of northern Tanzania.   

Click here to learn more and donate to the Plaster House.