Treatment Changes Everything

Back to school in her village, smiling, and self-assured, her attitude to life completely changed.

When Laxmi was a toddler, she accidently fell into the kitchen fire in the corner of her home and lost a limb. Children are often exposed to unsafe environments like this in rural homes in Nepal. Her mother had to carry her everywhere. Going to school was very challenging and she often dragged herself behind her other classmates, crawling to school on her hands and one foot. Always left behind, always left out, Laxmi was traumatized in body, heart, and mind. Her development was far behind the other children.

Everything changed after HRDC staff found Laxmi in her rural village. Accepted for treatment at the HRDC hospital, her dad carried her for four hours to the nearest bus so he could bring her to the HRDC hospital.  An operation was performed on her leg and measurements were made in our Prosthetics & Orthotics Workshop for a prosthetic limb with an artificial ankle, calf, and cushioning knee joint. It was a magical moment for everyone when she was able to stand for the first time in her entire life. Following rehabilitation and a little bit of training she was able to confidently walk.

 Back to school in her village, smiling, and self-assured, her attitude to life completely changed. She can walk, climb the steep hills in her mountainous village, and play with other children her age. She has friends. There is no way her parents, overwhelmed with happiness and gratitude, could have afforded the treatment and sophisticated limb that changed their daughter’s life. Laxmi and her family are filled with hope and opportunities for the future.