Beacon of light and hope

Jaffna Jaipur Centre celebrates 30 years:

If there is one principle that has been at the core of the services that the Jaipur Centre in Jaffna had held fast for over thirty years, it is the belief that a person’s disability does not define them.

While providing prosthetic limbs, wheelchairs, mobility vehicles and other services to those who have suffered loss of limbs over the years, the Jaipur Centre never forgot that there was a person attached to that artificial limb. The care provided has always been holistic in nature which is why those who have been beneficiaries have nothing but praise for this centre that remains a ‘beacon of excellence’ in the war-scarred landscape that is the north.

Many great things are forged in times of adversity and the Jaipur Centre in Jaffna was no different. The outbreak of war in the country and the desperate toll it took on lives and limbs, was the motivating force for the visionaries who helped establish this centre on June 1, 1987. Using cost-effective technology for prosthetic limbs pioneered in Jaipur in India, the centre was able to successfully alleviate the suffering of many men, women and children who lost limbs due to the limb-destroying effect of land mines and other weapons of war. Despite the end of the war in 2009, there is still a great need for these services, in view of the loss of limbs caused by road traffic accidents and diabetic foot infections.

As a surgeon working at the Teaching Hospital in Jaffna, it was my unhappy duty to care for victims of land mine and shrapnel injuries as well as those with advanced diabetic foot infections resulting in the need for limb amputation.

For me as a surgeon, there was no operation that I found more soul-destroying than having to remove a person’s limb because of the finality of the procedure and what it would mean to the patient’s life. However, one saving grace was knowing that there was hope for these people to lead normal lives due to the services provided by the Jaipur Centre. Equally, I valued the visits by the physiotherapists from the Jaipur Centre to the hospital who would examine those people who had been amputated and allay their fears concerning their future by providing them with the positive information about the prospects of artificial prosthesis and advising them how others had successfully transitioned to normal routines and activities.

I considered it a great privilege when I was asked by Dr. Ganeshamoorthy and Dr. Theivendran in 1998 to help the centre by visiting it occasionally to ascertain and examine those who had suffered loss of limbs and to be able to advice the physiotherapists and workshop staff regard them.

I did so for four years until an orthopaedic surgeon arrived at the Centre and I was able to hand over that responsibility. However, I will always remember with gratitude the opportunity provided to me to serve the Centre and establish long lasting links with the Centre and its staff.

Many are the achievements of this centre in terms of the services and help it continues to provide to hundreds of people. During its thirty years of existence, it had produced and fitted over seven thousand artificial limbs. It had also made and supplied over a thousand tricycles and wheelchairs for mobility as well as provided thousands of crutches. Nearly six thousand patients have benefited from physiotherapy with multiple visits. Children with cerebral palsy and physical disabilities were also examined and helped. These are just the hard facts. As important, if not more, is the concern, care and close attention provided to all those who come through the Institution’s gates. That was what makes the Jaipur Centre special.

When I first became aware of the Jaipur Centre, one of the first things that struck me concerning it was that the management board was made up of entirely women volunteers! I found this to be so surprising in what was, unfortunately, still a male dominated society. All staff members had served with such selflessness and dedication and it was an example to others to emulate. The management had happily not rested on its laurels, but had continuously strived, with the help of many willing donors, to modernise the services and provide what was best for those who needed their help. Most importantly, the centre had maintained its humaneness and its personal touch at a time when we see this lacking in other areas today. That is a testament to those who work in and direct this marvellous institution.

To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe. - Anatole France.

The Jaipur Centre has done that and more. May the Jaipur Centre continue to successfully serve our community in the coming years and remain a beacon of light and hope.

Dr. D. C. Ambalavanar, Visiting Lecturer,

Dept. of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Jaffna.