UTC faculty members help heal Haiti earthquake survivors |
UTC and Chattanooga State students collaborate to Embrace Haiti |
 A patient amputated her own arm with a rock to free herself from earthquake debris. |
 Flag of Haiti |
| Dr. June Hanks recently spent her 48th birthday in Haiti, sharing her skills as a physical therapist and wound specialist as she responded to the needs of earthquake victims.
According to Hanks, it is estimated 8-10 per cent of Haitians had some form of disability before the earthquake. No one knows the number of amputations performed in Haiti since the earthquake, but she estimates it is more than 4,000. “Amputations are still being performed. There are crush injuries, compression wounds and permanent nerve damage for many people there,” Hanks said. |
In response to the earthquake that struck Haiti in January, students from UTC and Chattanooga State Community College are uniting to launch a campaign to collect critical medical supplies. Known as “Embrace Haiti,” the project reminds the community that the crisis in Haiti continues and focuses primarily on obtaining orthotic and prosthetic equipment-devices that improve mobility and independence for individuals who have broken leg or foot bones or who have had a limb amputated. “Embrace Haiti” begins on Saturday, March 20, and concludes on Monday, March 29. The public is invited to participate. |
