Health News
Following the devastating earthquake in Haiti, several LifeBridge Health employees have volunteered their time and services to earthquake victims. Among these are physicians Shawn Standard and Albert Aboulafia.
An orthopedic surgeon and co-director of sarcoma services at the Alvin & Lois
Lapidus Cancer Institute, Aboulafia traveled to Haiti from Feb. 3-7 to work with Project Medishare. Before he left, fellow orthopedic surgeon John Herzenberg sent over 50 pounds of donations that included soap and blankets.
An estimated 300,000 Haitians were injured in the 7.0 earthquake. Once Aboulafia arrived, there were roughly 140 adults and 65 children
and adolescents in the Medishare tents who were awaiting treatment.
He worked at a breakneck pace, estimating that he performed 50 operations over a two-day period, including wound care, skin grafts, amputations and fracture realignments. When a severe wound is left untreated, infection can develop, leaving no choice but to amputate.
?I think we did a lot of good,? he says. ?There, you could really make an impact. Would I fix a fracture different in Baltimore? Yes. But there were no lab tests, no blood. We did the best possible care that we could under the circumstances.?
One patient who sticks in his mind is a 90-year-old woman with a femur fracture.
?She understood the risks of surgery, and we were able to help her,? he says. ?She had a place to go home to, and we were able to get her thigh fixed, put her into a wheelchair, and send her with relatives to go home.?
Aboulafia said he was lucky to have physical therapists, nurses, physician assistants, and volunteers who were dedicated to helping treat patients.
?Lots of times it was the people who were very much out of their element who excelled,? he says. ?It was a tense and emotional time, but you saw a lot of people who were at their best.?
He hopes to return soon. To learn more about Project Medishare, click here.
- Teenager Set To Return To Haiti After Louisville Docs Fix Her Heart
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- My Experience In Haiti
by Heather Kline, P.A. - C, MMS Sinai Hospital Department of Orthopedic Surgery After I heard about the Haiti earthquake on January 12, I felt compelled to do whatever I could to help people there. I knew going in what needed to be done, but never realized...
- Riao Doctor Treating Injured Haitians
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Health News
Orthopedic Surgeon Reflects on Haiti Experience
Following the devastating earthquake in Haiti, several LifeBridge Health employees have volunteered their time and services to earthquake victims. Among these are physicians Shawn Standard and Albert Aboulafia.
An orthopedic surgeon and co-director of sarcoma services at the Alvin & Lois
Lapidus Cancer Institute, Aboulafia traveled to Haiti from Feb. 3-7 to work with Project Medishare. Before he left, fellow orthopedic surgeon John Herzenberg sent over 50 pounds of donations that included soap and blankets.An estimated 300,000 Haitians were injured in the 7.0 earthquake. Once Aboulafia arrived, there were roughly 140 adults and 65 children
and adolescents in the Medishare tents who were awaiting treatment.He worked at a breakneck pace, estimating that he performed 50 operations over a two-day period, including wound care, skin grafts, amputations and fracture realignments. When a severe wound is left untreated, infection can develop, leaving no choice but to amputate.
?I think we did a lot of good,? he says. ?There, you could really make an impact. Would I fix a fracture different in Baltimore? Yes. But there were no lab tests, no blood. We did the best possible care that we could under the circumstances.?
One patient who sticks in his mind is a 90-year-old woman with a femur fracture.
?She understood the risks of surgery, and we were able to help her,? he says. ?She had a place to go home to, and we were able to get her thigh fixed, put her into a wheelchair, and send her with relatives to go home.?Aboulafia said he was lucky to have physical therapists, nurses, physician assistants, and volunteers who were dedicated to helping treat patients.
?Lots of times it was the people who were very much out of their element who excelled,? he says. ?It was a tense and emotional time, but you saw a lot of people who were at their best.?
He hopes to return soon. To learn more about Project Medishare, click here.
- Teenager Set To Return To Haiti After Louisville Docs Fix Her Heart
After Louisville doctors performed a life-saving operation on her failing heart, a 16-year-old girl is set to return to her native Haiti. Stephanie Privert, left, came to Kentucky after she became ill following the deadly 7.0-magnitude earthquake that...
- Cancer Survivors Recognized At Camden Yards
The Baltimore Orioles will recognize the courage and strength of those living with cancer in an Evening of Hope pregame ceremony before the Orioles take on the Florida Marlins. James Brooks, a multiple myeloma patient in remission, was treated at the...
- Team Sinai Heads To Haiti
As a sign of their commitment in providing medicine for those who are less fortunate, LifeBridge Health has several employees who regularly go on medical missions. This week, a team of volunteers from Sinai Hospital head to Haiti, many for the second...
- My Experience In Haiti
by Heather Kline, P.A. - C, MMS Sinai Hospital Department of Orthopedic Surgery After I heard about the Haiti earthquake on January 12, I felt compelled to do whatever I could to help people there. I knew going in what needed to be done, but never realized...
- Riao Doctor Treating Injured Haitians
A team from Sinai Hospital?s Rubin Institute for Advanced Orthopedics recently arrived in the Dominican Republic to treat Haitians injured in the earthquake. Team members include Shawn Standard, M.D., a pediatric orthopedic surgeon, Marie Gdalevitch,...