New knees, new life

A Canvasback medical team and Majuro hospital operating room staff performed a total knee replacement Tuesday this week at the hospital (left). Photo: Kelly Lorennij.

KELLY LORENNIJ

The Canvasback Missions orthopedic team is making good progress in bringing health and healing to Majuro having seen over 200 patients and performed 23 operations since starting June 17 at Majuro hospital. The visiting team has been fully utilizing donated vital sign and cardiac monitors and a bovie cautery (to prevent bleeding) from Wilcox Hospital in Kauai, as well as $1,000,000 worth of implants from Zimmer Biomet.

In the US, total knee replacement surgery costs on average of $49,500. With over 20 knee replacements performed the past two weeks, Canvasback has delivered over a million dollars worth of medical services to RMI patients.

“The first two surgeries were challenging cases that will change the lives of two 13-year-old children,” Canvasback Vice President Jacque Spence commented. “One was a wrist osteotomy on the girl who had been born with a wrist deformity. The other surgery repaired a re-occurring dislocate hip. The boy had suffered from this problem for year.”
A Canvasback eye specialist team will be starting a two-week stint at Majuro hospital July 15.

Read more about this in the June 28, 2019 edition of the Marshall Islands Journal.