A team of 18 specialists – including physicians, nurses, and social workers – from the Shriners Burns Hospital in Boston, held an outreach clinic yesterday at Universidad Catolica de Santo Domingo’s Rehabilitation Center, during which 133 children with scars and deformities caused by severe burns were treated and evaluated. The children are from low-income families and came to the clinic from several different cities and towns across the DR. By the end of the day, over 60 of these children had been selected to travel to Boston for surgery – at no cost to their families – a service that includes round-trip air fare for each child and one parent through the American Airline’s “Miles for Kids” program, hospital expenses, living expenses and room and board for the parent while the child is hospitalized. The human drama of the children, many of whom are severely disfigured and have other limitations, bears witness to the scope of the social service being provided by the Shriners – considered one of the world’s greatest philanthropic organisations – to try to bring their lives back to normal as far as humanly possible. Better known for its colorful parades, circuses and clowns, the Shriners of North America (see http:\/\/www.shrinershq.org) is a volunteer Masonic organization that owns and operates 22 hospitals for children throughout the United States and Mexico City. Its local branch, the Dominican Shrine Club, offers five outreach clinics like yesterday’s every year in Santo Domingo. DR1 readers who know of any low-income family child under 18 years of age, needing reconstructive surgery for burns, or with orthopaedic problems or spinal chord injuries, should contact Miguel Savinon at shrinersdr@gmail.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A team of 18 specialists – including physicians, nurses, and social workers – from the Shriners Burns Hospital in Boston, held an outreach clinic yesterday at Universidad Catolica de Santo Domingo’s Rehabilitation Center, during which 133 children with scars and deformities caused by severe burns were treated and evaluated. The children are from low-income families … <\/p>\n