This is 13-year-old Visal, a student in Cambodia who wants to be a teacher when he grows up. Outside of school, he likes to play football and other games.
“When Visal was three, he was in a traumatic accident that fractured his elbow,” our medical partner, Children’s Surgical Centre (CSC), shares. “He cannot bend his elbow and it is difficult for him to hold or carry things with his left arm. Visal tells us his elbow is very painful.”
Visal received Khmer traditional treatment for three months back in his province, but his condition did not improve. After hearing about CSC on the radio, he traveled three hours with his grandmother to reach CSC for proper treatment.
With $405, doctors will perform an ORIF (open reduction and internal fixation) operation to realign the fractured bone in Visal’s arm and use metal screws to hold it in place. He will then be given a splint to support his arm while the bone properly heals.
This procedure will allow Visal to use his left arm again without any pain. After his surgery, Visal will be able to continue to pursue his dreams of becoming a teacher.