Every 5 seconds someone is severely burned in a developing country. Photo: David Snyder.
By Susan Hayes, ReSurge's president and CEO
At ReSurge, we have often said that when a patient comes to us with a disabling burn, that two terrible things have already happened. One, the burn was not prevented. And two, that the burn was not adequately treated when the accident happened; in many cases, the burn scar contractures, which we repair through reconstructive surgery, could have been prevented or reduced dramatically with such care.
Our vision has been to find a partner organization that could help us with burn prevention and early burn management --- and work with us to provide a holistic, 360 Approach, from prevention to recovery, to help save lives and build a safer world.
Today, we are pleased to share with you today that ReSurge International and the International Medical Corps are partnering to address a global burn crisis in which severe burns affect 7 million people a year - particularly impoverished women and children - in developing countries.
The partnership will leverage ReSurge’s 42-year history of serving burn survivors in vulnerable communities through reconstructive surgery, with International Medical Corps’ health care and training expertise over nearly three decades in more than 65 countries.
With financial support from Ronald McDonald House Charities® and future funders, ReSurge International and International Medical Corps will create burn prevention programs, increase access to medical care for burn survivors and build local surgical capacity and training programs for burn treatment, beginning with a pilot program in Nepal.
Our organizations are also banding together to raise awareness of and develop advocacy campaigns on the neglected global health crisis of burns. We are announcing this now to mark National Burn Awareness Week, February 5-12. By this time next year, we hope an International Burn Awareness Day will be noted and observed.
We believe that vulnerable people without access to adequate health care should not have to suffer with deformities or life-threatening injuries caused by severe burns. Burns can easily be prevented and treated through surgery that corrects disabling injuries and saves countless lives. Solutions exist, and we are bringing those solutions into action. We hope you will join us.
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