This is Sia Mattia, a 25-year old woman from a village in Kono District. One unfortunate day in June, Mattia was carrying food to the farm when a tree suddenly fell on the road where she was walking, right on top of her. Her left leg was completely cut off, the right lower leg severely broken. At Koidu Government Hospital they amputated her left leg, before referring her to Lion Heart Medical Centre for X-ray and further treatment.
Based on the X-rays, our doctors decided she needed an external fixator for the bones of the right leg to heal correctly. This way, she would have the best chance to regain use of this leg and walk with crutches. LHMC is one of the few hospitals in Sierra Leone where this type of complicated surgeries is possible. We also ask a relatively small price, so that people like Mattia can still afford it. It was a difficult time for Mattia, leaving her children behind in the village and undergoing multiple operations. But she was happy to be at LHMC, feeling it was the best place for her to get better.
The operations went well, just like the healing process. Last month, Mattia could finally go home after more than 6 weeks of treatment! The amputation wound had healed and she had started to walk on her right leg. The goodbye was a bit emotional, as she had become friends with the nurses at Female Ward and especially with nurse-in-charge & X-ray technician Victoria.
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