Rehabilitation center offers hope to disabled persons in need of artificial limbs

Juba Physical Rehabilitation Reference Center (PRRC) has restored hope to thousands of persons with disability including refugees from neighboring Sudan.
Photo shows prosthetic lower limb for persons with special needs on 29 November 2024 (Photo by Awan Achiek)

By Awan Achiek

Juba Physical Rehabilitation Reference Center (PRRC) has restored hope to thousands of persons with disability including refugees from neighboring Sudan.

Pastor Given Gado Mullah, from Western Equatoria State, with a prosthetic lower limb on his left leg visited the center for the eighth time to replace his limb since a long post-amputation recovery process in 2008.

“So when we were still in the movement, we used to go up to Lokichogio in Kenya for the repair of the leg,” Gado told The Dawn in an interview on Friday in Juba.

“But when we came to this site after the civil war, then I heard of the establishment of this place which provides prosthetic limbs,” he added.

Gado, a former SPLA soldier, lost his leg in 1989 in Nasir County of Upper Nile State during the liberation struggle.

He has been visiting Juba Rehabilitation Center regularly to replace his artificial limb whenever it gets spoilt.

“It depends on the time when it gets spoilt if there is hard work, because in the village we used to dig and then we used to sometimes carry heavy things,” said Gado.

Another beneficiary, Mary Samson, 30, from Maridi County arrived at the center on 12th October to have her right leg amputated due to diabetic in 2005 replaced.

“My left hand has been replaced and now I feel better. With this new leg, I will be able to do my things without seeking help,” said Samson.

She visits the center after three years to change her artificial limb.

“The center offers better health services and if anybody needs artificial devices, she or she should visit this center,” said Samson.

Persons with special needs waiting at reception in the center on 29 November 2024 (Photo by Awan Achiek)

For his part, Uwar Bosco, therapeutic technologist at the Rehabilitation Center said they locally produce different types of artificial devices after many of the staff attended four years of training in Rwanda and Sudan.

He said most of the materials are imported from Geneva with support from ICRC.

“Our service users range from people who had accidents, people who suffered maybe from different pathologies, polio, cerebral palsy, mostly children or trauma, fall or snake bites and all that,” said Bosco.

He said they receive most service users from different parts of the country including refugees from Sudan.

James Ochan Amos, ICRC Disability Inclusion Advisor said they have treated 2,549 cases between January and October this year.

According to Ochan, the center has been overwhelmed by an influx of service users from Sudan.

“But this year also we have a lot of influx from the crisis that is coming from Sudan as well. We have a team that is doing this from Renk,” said Ochan.

“We are also supporting societal integration of people with disabilities. You know, after rehabilitation, they have been fit with the devices, they need to go back home or into society, starting a new life.”

For her part, Monday Clement Laku, Senior Administrator of Physical and Rehabilitation Reference Center revealed that the center has treated 7,661 service users since 2008.

“And so far since the center was opened in 2009, we have registered 7,661 service users who benefited from the center” said Clement.

She said their services range from prosthetic lower limb, walking aid, crutches and Wheelchair and others.

Clement said they also treat people who suffered from pathologies, polio, cerebral palsy or trauma.

“We provide them with the artificial devices. That’s the prosthesis and orthotics. The prosthetics are part of the device that the person moves part of his body,” she said

“For cases that are not benefiting both the orthotics and prosthetics, we give them wheelchairs and we also deliver for them the walking aids like the crutches. If there is also a walking frame, we also deliver,” added Clement.

Thousands of persons with disabilities have successfully recovered from physical and social trauma at the Juba Rehabilitation Center which is supported by the Ministry of Gender, Child and Social Welfare.

The center provides several health services including provision of artificial limbs supported by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), a humanitarian organization based in Geneva.

Many of the people who visit the center are victims of gunshots, landmines or unexploded ordnances left behind by years of conflict.

Supported by the ICRC, the country has three physical rehabilitation centers for individuals with disabilities in Juba, Wau and Rumbek.

Therapeutic experts attending to service users on 29 November 2024 (Photo by Awan Achiek)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *