Minnesota Physical Therapist Completes Volunteer Rotation in Haiti

NORFOLK, VA (11/10/2010)(readMedia)-- An assistant professor of physical therapy at St. Catherine University in Minneapolis returned home from a three-week mission to Haiti on Nov. 2.

Sue Klappa, Ph.D., provided volunteer physical therapy services through the Hanger Amputee Clinic at Albert Schweitzer Hospital in Deschapelles on behalf of Physicians for Peace, an international nonprofit based in Norfolk, Va.

The need for prosthetic and orthotic services and physical therapy in Haiti is significant. Even before the earthquake on Jan. 12, 2010, about 7 percent of the Haitian population (roughly 800,000 people) had a disability, and many Haitians lost limbs in the disaster. Since the earthquake, Physicians for Peace physical therapists have contributed more than 1,700 hours of volunteer service to the clinic.

"One patient told me, 'there are so many people on the island who need physical therapy,'" Klappa said. "And she is right. I'm always surprised and impressed with the Haitian people and their strength."

Klappa has volunteered in Haiti before, in 2007 and three times in 2010. Her time in Deschapelles last month represented her second volunteer mission with Physicians for Peace; in 2007, she helped evaluate the availability of NGO rehabilitation services in the Dominican Republic and Haiti.

Physical therapists work in Haiti as part of Physicians for Peace's longstanding Walking Free program, which provides clinical services, education and training to medical professionals involved in the treatment of amputees. The Hanger Clinic was established by the Haitian Amputee Coalition, spearheaded by Hanger Orthopedic Group, Inc. and its philanthropic organization, The Hanger Ivan R. Sabel Foundation, in partnership with Physicians for Peace, Shepherd Spinal Center, and the Harold & Kayrita Anderson Family Foundation, the Albert Schweitzer Hospital and Catholic Medical Mission Board.

Physicians for Peace is currently fundraising to support 2011 missions to Haiti. For more information or to donate, visit www.physiciansforpeace.org.

Photos available. For more information, please contact Physicians for Peace.

ABOUT PHYSICIANS FOR PEACE

Physicians for Peace is an international non-profit organization that mobilizes volunteer healthcare professionals to assist developing nations with unmet medical needs and scarce resources. Through effective, hands-on medical education and training, clinical care and donated medical supplies, Physicians for Peace develops long-term, sustainable, replicable, and evidence-based programs to help partner nations build medical capability and capacity to help themselves. Since 1989 volunteers for the 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization have conducted medical missions in more than 60 countries. With its headquarters in Norfolk, Va., Physicians for Peace has programs in 22 countries and offices in the Philippines and the Dominican Republic. In 2009, the organization celebrated its 20th Anniversary. For more information, go to: www.physiciansforpeace.org

###