A Drop in the Ocean

“It is best to do something, in which one believes. To see the results of my work is very rewarding, for instance, to see how a wheelchair can give a lot more autonomy to a child”, says Sergio Mainetti. The Italian orthopaedic technician is a Christian Blind Mission (CBM) coworker and manages the orthopaedic workshop of Katalemwa Cheshire Home (KCH) in Kampala/Uganda. The orthopaedic workshop belongs to a rehabilitation centre, providing pre- and postoperative rehabilitation for children and young adults with physical disabilities.

The 38-year-old has been living in Uganda for more than eight years. In August 2003, he started working for CBM in Katalemwa, 8 km away from the capital Kampala. In the beginning, Mainetti’s first challenges were to improve the management and storage of the orthopaedic workshop. "With the databases I created, we can now easily access any kind of information related to the workshop management as stock levels and value, purchasing and use of materials, production data, and sales."

A good storage management is necessary, as is obvious from the amount of devices produced in the workshop. In 2004, walking appliances, including 135 calipers, 488 crutches, almost 400 polio boots, and 52 wheelchairs, as well as orthoses, prostheses, hand-powered tricycles, special chairs, and braces were produced. "We use local materials, so that the community can contribute largely to the programme. This is a step towards sustainability." The Ugandan Ministry of Health has acknowledged the quality of Katalemwa Cheshire Home’s orthopaedic workshop and appointed it as supplier for the Districts of Mukono, Kayunga, and Kamuli for the year 2005.

The devices are used for children being treated for their physical impairments. These include polio, cerebral palsy, clubfoot, osteomyelitis, post burn contractures, tuberculosis, and other physically impairing conditions. On average, more than 60 in-patients are being served daily. The home has 54 beds for children and young adults needing an operation or a walking device. The duration of their stay in Katalemwa Cheshire Home depends on their impairment. “It takes seven to eight months to correct a clubfoot”, says an orthopaedic technologist. Years ago, the condition was corrected by an operation. “Today we apply serial casts and foot abduction braces and, over the months, the foot grows into the correct position".

Besides providing high-quality rehabilitation services, Mainetti and his wife Maria Regina Zulianello, a physiotherapist, are committed to the training of national specialists. "Training is the priority. There is no future if we do not put most of our efforts in training." In the workshop, the staff learns the new appliance's design and how to do repairs for the appliances. Also, Zulianello has dedicated herself to the training of national specialists—organising short on-the-job training sessions in the rehabilitation centre and occupational therapists as tutors in the governmental school. The commitment and efforts of the Mainetti family and the project partner contributed to the good reputation of Katalemwa Cheshire Home as training centre: “KCH is now well-known in the country for the chance given to professionals, whether physiotherapists, occupational therapists, orthopaedic technologists, or technicians, to upgrade their training.”

More Professionals Required
More professionals in the field of orthopaedic impairment are still needed, because still many children remain untreated: Uganda has a total population of 26 million, and 52% are younger than 15 years – in figures 13.52 million. 1.1 million of them have a disability. How does Mainetti cope with this situation? "If you see the need, one’s contributions do only mean a drop in the ocean. But even though, everyone is called to contribute according to one’s best abilities."

Further Information: Services for People with Physical Impairments