ISPO Instructional Course on High Risk Foot Management for the Pacific

ISPO Outreach is proud to announce the successful awarding of a project grant from the Evert van Ballegooie Stichting (EvB foundation). Dr van Ballegooie was a Dutch internist, who specialised in the treatment of Diabetes Mellitus. After his passing in 2008, an annual fund was established in his name, to support projects which would add to his legacy. ISPO Australia is very pleased to receive this grant, which will go a long way towards their goal of improving high-risk care in the Pacific.

ISPO will be running a 3 day Instructional Course to support High Risk Foot Management in the Pacific. The Course will be run in February 2017 at the Tungaru Rehabilitation Service (TRS), Kiribati. The Instructional Course will have attendees from Australia, Samoa and Kiribati and it will aim to:

  • Build sensitivity and awareness of diabetic foot problems and treatment options relevant to the Pacific.
  • Provide education and training on wound classification, grading and off-loading techniques
  • Build relationships and partnerships between clinical care providers in Samoa and Kiribati

The Pacific Region has some of the highest rates of diabetes in the world with estimates of 15-47% of the population having diabetes. One of the most frequent complications of diabetes is diabetic foot problems, such as ulcer and infection, which can rapidly result in lower limb amputation. An estimated 7% of people with diabetes will have a lower limb amputation in the Pacific, and yet it is estimated that at least 50% of these amputations could be prevented with appropriate footcare.  This care includes: early identification of foot problems, wound management, offloading devices to aid healing of ulcers and the promotion of lifestyle changes.

ISPO Australia is very excited to have this opportunity to provide education and training to the people of Samoa and Kiribati and to assist in managing high-risk foot in the Pacific.

The course will be held at the TRS, a critical facility in Kiribati, which was destroyed in a fire in October 2012. With support from ISPO Australia, the service and centre were rebuilt and officially re-opened in 2015. Andrew Jolly, a member of Outreach and a volunteer for Scope Global will be working for 6 months at TRS helping to prepare for this seminar and ensuring capacity building and sustainability within the center.

We extend our thanks to the board of the EvB foundation for their support of this project.

 

RDH in action
ISPO Australia volunteer Richard Dyson Holland, in 2014, providing training as part of the Keep Moving pilot.