This is the third Rotaplast mission to Sylhet in as many years. There is a significant need here for the services of Rotaplast and the Rotary Club of Jalalabad is committed to making a difference by hosting a yearly mission. For patients like 16-year-old Shafali, that is very important.
Shafali lives with her family in a village three hours away from Sylhet. When she was six-years-old a kerosene lamp exploded, catching her clothing on fire. She was burned terribly on the chest, neck and arm. She was left with horrible scarring on her neck. And her arm constricted due to the lack of proper aftercare.
Last year, Shafali’s parents learned of the Rotaplast mission in Sylhet. They made the bus ride from their village to Sylhet. They waited in the long line during the opening clinic and, upon being assessed by the doctors, she had surgery to release the burn contracture of her neck. The doctors told Shafali’s parents that they should return this year with Shafali for additional surgery.
On this mission, Shafali had surgery to release her left arm that had fused to her side as the result of burn scarring. Doctors Kevin Degnan and Angelo Capozzi worked for several hours to release the arm and to graft new skin on the affected areas.
This morning, Shafali was found sitting up on the bed. She is in a lot of pain, but is already looking forward to next year when Rotaplast surgeons will do surgery to release contracted scar tissue on her throat.
Shafali is truly grateful for Rotaplast and the Rotary Club of Jalalabad for making this possible through a yearly mission.