Hospital helps disabled girl

 By ELIAS LARI

SIX-year-old Elizabeth Dop can now move around easily by herself – thanks to a multi-purpose rehabilitation frame and tilt table donated to her.

The donations came from the Sir Joseph Nombri Kundiawa Memorial General Hospital’s physiotherapy department.

Dop from Jimi in Jiwaka was born a healthy baby on Nov 7, 2007, but was diagnosed malaria meningitis when she was eight months old. It badly affected her health.

She had an operation in Port Moresby but that did not help her much.

Dad Mai and mum Dorothy strongly believed that God alone could heal her.

Dop began treatment at the hospital’s physiotherapy department early last year. But travelling from Mt Hagen to Kundiawa every Tuesday and Thursday was risky and expensive. 

The department therefore decided to give Dop the rehabilitation frame and tilt table to assist her.

Officer-in-charge of the physiotherapy department, Joe Kombeng said they were the first two projects they had designed and built for patients.

The rehabilitation frame and tilt table are to assist Dop do her exercise instead of travelling twice a week to Kundiawa.

“We like assisting people like Elizabeth and I believe Kundiawa is the first hospital to build its own rehabilitation frame and tilt table for patients.”

Kombeng said they planned to focus on treating people with crippled feet.

He said with the support of three technicians, two physiotherapists and five trainees, better service and support could be provided to disabled people.