Team to help burn victims, teach fire safety in Ethiopia
Fire prevention officer to accompany medical team heading to African country to help children, young adults disabled by burns
Thousands of people are affected by burn injuries every day in Ethiopia, and a Kelowna fire prevention officer is going to spread the message of prevention.
Restor International, a Kelowna-based not-for-profit organization, is sending its third medical team to Ethiopia on Nov. 11 to provide free essential surgeries to children and young adults suffering from disabling and disfiguring conditions as a result of burns.
For the first time, someone with the Kelowna Fire Department will accompany the medical team to Ethiopia to teach local people about fire safety and burn prevention.
Besides falling into fires, a big issue is people not knowing how to properly treat and care for the burns, said Kim East, surgical care co-ordinator with Restor International.
“If it’s not properly dressed and cared for, (the child) winds up with a hand that’s scarred down and is totally useless, and as the child grows, the scar tissue is so thick that the arm grows and the hand bends back because the scar tissue holds it in, so he ends up with a totally non-functioning arm,” she said. “More is needed to not only reduce the likelihood of a fire injury, but also the severity and impact of the injury. It starts with education.”
Kelowna fire prevention officer Gayanne Pacholzuk will be teaching the act of stop, drop and roll and the importance of cooling a burn with water.
“We’re going to keep it really straightforward,” said Pacholzuk.
Pacholzuk will be taking poster boards with large images showing what to do if someone falls in a fire, along with explanations in both English and Amharic, the official language of Ethiopia.
She will be working with two fire departments in Ethiopia along with local schools.
“I look forward to being a part of the Restor team this year and being able to share my knowledge with Ethiopian people in hopes that some of the burn injuries can be prevented in the future,” said Pacholzuk.
The Kelowna Professional Firefighters Charitable Society has sponsored all the educational material, which will be left in Ethiopia.
The mission is funded by private donors, Rotary clubs across B.C. and a grant from the Rotary International Foundation.