Moving lives forward

Two hours: the time required to transform the life of someone who cannot walk because of the need for a hip or knee replacement.

But for patients in the public sector, the waiting list is long. In truth, it often takes several years for their turn to arrive.

In 2021, our Constantiaberg hospital collaborated with the Joint Care Trust, a not-for-profit organisation, to provide those two life-changing hours to 17 individuals on the waiting list at Victoria Hospital in Cape Town. Mediclinic made the surgeries possible by providing the operating theatre, trained theatre nurses and a night in hospital. ‘This is a crucial project that allows us to bring real benefits throughout our local community,’ says Henk Laskey, Hospital General Manager. ‘If we can use our spare capacity to help people get back to their lives, we must.’

What makes the surgeries so impactful is that, in many cases, individuals are in the prime of their lives and have been unable to earn a living due to their joint pain. ‘When someone must wait years for a hip replacement, they are being taken out of the market, out of employment and the economy. So, when we are able to partner with Mediclinic to reduce the surgical waiting list, it is a huge benefit,’ explains Dr Nomafrench Mbombo, the Western Cape Provincial Minister of Health.

Established in 2012, the Joint Care Trust – under the direction of its trustees, Drs Deon Engela, Nick Martin and Paul Rowe – helps state patients by alleviating the backlog of replacement surgery. The doctors do so not only by obtaining donated implants and performing surgery pro bono, but also by using those procedures to share their expertise.

‘I see it as a training opportunity,’ says Dr Engela, explaining that the replacement procedure requires the main surgeon to be assisted. ‘If you are an assistant, you will definitely gain a lot of experience just by observing what is being done.’ During the surgeries at our Constantiaberg hospital, Dr Woyisile Nkomo, an orthopaedic surgeon working in the public sector in QwaQwa, had the chance to fine-tune his skills.

Since three pro bono operations are scheduled at a time, it provides an ideal opportunity for state doctors to gain further exposure. ‘The idea is for this whole concept to grow and for other people to become involved,’ says Dr Engela. With the hospital planning to support 40 replacement surgeries in 2022, he is reaching out to the University of Cape Town’s Department of Orthopaedics for more training candidates.

‘It is a big move forwards for us to be able to work with Mediclinic on this project.’