Assistive Devices Program Highlight

In partnership with Pet Cart International, we were able to provide this patient with wheels! He’s happy to have a device that enables him to get around his community and to make the 3 hour trip by hand cart into Les Cayes whenever he needs.

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The partnership with Pet Cart International enables us to distribute these devices in our community. In fact, our assistant prosthetics and orthotics technician can often be seen after work or on weekends around Les Cayes or at the local beach in his red pet cart.

Check out our devices page to learn more about wheelchairs, walkers, crutches and the other devices we provide to patients from our clinic site in Les Cayes or by going to them in surrounding communities.

 

Clubfoot Day!

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Left: Clubfoot technician Samuel performs joint manipulations.

Right: Patient wears special brace to maintain proper ankle alignment.

Today we want to celebrate our Clubfoot Correction program! Every Wednesday is Clubfoot day at Tous Ensemble. In partnership with the CURE International we treat children with clubfoot – a congenital (condition patients are born with) internal and downward rotation of the foot at the ankle. If left uncorrected, clubfoot can be debilitating, children often struggle or have pain walking while living with the stigma of having a physical disability. Although we are working to change the perception of persons with disabilities and increase opportunity for full and equal integration for everyone in our communities, there is still much work to do.

The good news: clubfoot is correctable in young children through an inexpensive and noninvasive procedure. The method FONTEN and other partners of CURE International uses is referred to as the Ponseti Method, after the physician who developed it in the 1950’s. Joint manipulations and a series of weekly casts are performed by a trained professional to incrementally realign the ankle joint. After proper alignment is achieved, a special brace is worn for months or years. The timeline varies according to age of the child at the time of correction with infants having more flexible joints and significantly shorter treatment lengths.

To learn more check out our clubfoot program page.

Double your Donation on Tuesday November 28th!

We are excited to share an awesome opportunity! On NOVEMBER 28th, donations through Climb Haiti will be DOUBLED by Facebook and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Your impact can be twice as big! As a small, local organization with a small operations budget even small donations make a big difference. Next Tuesday this is doubly true. Thank you to all the Friends of FONTEN who make our clinic and outreach work possible! Please share with friends and consider making a big impact next Tuesday!Patient with family, home and new assistive device smiles.jpg

Annual Fundraising Campaign Now Open

Our annual crowd funding campaign has begun. As you know, we are a small, local foundation in Les Cayes, Haiti relying on private international donations for 85% of our operational costs. This past year we had to make difficult decisions, reducing capacity in some programs and putting others on hold because funds were not available. Our goal is to live in a society where persons with disabilities are respected and integrated completely into community with the same opportunities for sustainable livelihoods, education and health as other people. Our hope is that your generous donations to this campaign will enable us to continue the vital rehabilitation work we are doing, increase our capacity for existing programs and expand to meet other demands! This includes our rural clinics, advocacy for persons with disabilities, return to work programs and more! We literally cannot do this without your donations. Thank you! Please click here to make a donation or here for more information or to share with friends. Mesi anpil!

 

International day of people with disabilities in Les Cayes, Haiti

More than 300 people attended, on Saturday 3 December, to celebrate the international day of people with disabilities in Les Cayes, Haiti.

As foundation one of our goals is to raise public awareness about disability.
We held an event to prevent disabilities and to promote the rights of people with disabilities, which was characterized by the participation of the amputee soccer team of Les Cayes.

We thank Fondasyon América Solidaria Haiti for helping us in this celebration

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Clinic report

Dear Friends,

We are pleased to inform you that since last week our rehabilitation center has returned to normal operation, where we are receiving cases of people with post-hurricane injuries and providing them with the necessary care.

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Because of the high number of people affected by Hurricane Matthew, as foundation, we are also doing:

  • Daily visits to the “Lyceé Philippe” Guerrier and the refuge from Les Cayes, where we perform respiratory care and wound healing to those who need it.
  • Nexus among people with severe damage with higher complexity hospitals
  • Assessment of the needs of people with disabilities post Hurricane Matthew
  • Assistance to the NGO Handicap International in different hospitals from Les Cayes

You can also help Haiti !

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