Today for the first time, 24 people with mobility issues from 20 villages around Singanamalla are receiving the services of a mobile orthopedic workshop. RDT began this project in January 2020 to provide and repair mobility devices but was forced to halt it shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic began. When the lockdown restrictions were lifted, the van resumed its journey. Since August, it has been travelling to different RDT project regions, including the Srisailam forest area.

“The van provides small and quick services like replacing small parts like screws, minor repairs, taking measurements to prepare their devices, etc. We also assess their problem and counsel them so they don’t need to come all the way to our orthopedic and prosthetics workshops in Bathalapalli and Kalyandurg,” says C. Shekhar who is the orthotic and prosthetics technician in charge of the workshop at Kalyandurg.

A prosthetics technician is making a cast to build an appliance for a person with disability. ©RDT

People with mobility devices in need of a tune up have arrived at the RDT supplementary school and community center and are sitting 6 feet apart from one another on the verandah. One of them is 14-year-old Charan who is seated while his mother gives his personal and health details to the RDT staff sitting at the desk. Now a teen-ager, Charan has outgrown his prosthetics and has come to have them repaired so he can walk comfortably again.

Because Charan was born with an inverted leg, his parents used to have to carry him everywhere. In 2012, he underwent a surgery at the RDT Bathalapalli Hospital to have it amputated and was provided with calipers so he could walk on his own.

During the lockdown, his caliper became tighter and the artificial foot wore out but, due to the lockdown restrictions, he had to manage anyway. Today, at the mobile workshop he finally had them repaired. It took less than 30 minutes.

Charan after having his caliper repaired. ©RDT

Every month, the mobile orthopedic workshop team conducts around 12 sessions like this at the village level. The team consists of four people: a person-in-charge, an orthotics technician, a prosthetics technician and a physical therapist who helps with exercises for people with disabilities, including for children with cerebral palsy. Travelling to different villages and meeting people of all ages through the van has been “a novel experience” for the staff, Shekhar says. “It has given us a better idea of how people live and the problems they face, especially in the remote areas. Generally, people come to the stationary workshops only when there is a serious problem, otherwise they ignore it.”

This is true in the case of Balanna Talari, who has been walking with the help of a single bamboo stick since his crutches were stolen eight years ago. As a tailor who mainly lives on a pension, he couldn’t afford a day’s travel to the workshop at Bathalapalli, so he ignored his situation as a minor inconvenience. Thanks to the orthopedic van, he received new crutches and basic training in how to use them. “I feel a bit nervous about using these new crutches but I want to practice so I can walk more comfortably,” he says.

Shekhar helps Balanna to try out his new crutches. ©RDT

The mobile workshop is proving beneficial to many people, but its goal is to supplement the work done at the stationary workshops, not replace it. “They are both important because by reaching out to people through the vans, we repair minor problems that people generally ignore and even identify issues that need attention. At the same time, at the stationary workshops we manufacture the aids and appliances and also provide specialized care,” says Shekhar.

Anita has witnessed this entire process herself. She contracted polio when she was five years old and was provided with calipers and crutches by the Bathalapalli Workshop when she was in eighth grade. “For most people who live in remote villages, the locations of the stationary workshops are 2 hours away because of which they have to skip work and lose that day’s wage. The ortho van is proving to be a boon as it saves time and cost of travel and also greatly reduces the risk of travelling for people with disabilities, given the fact that not many public spaces are accessible. People from the villages are coming forward for consultations with great interest,” she says.

Anita leaving on her bike customized for her after having her calipers repaired. ©RDT

This workshop is the only one of its kind in the entire region and Shekhar thinks it is imperative that the work continues. “I am realizing that people are appreciating our work more now. At the stationary workshop, they don’t see the process of what we do but here at the ortho van, they realize that it is a complex work that requires attention and care as they see us dealing with people with varied problems. But more importantly through these workshops, we address the issue of discrimination and stigma that people with disabilities face. We encourage them to use their appliances without guilt and hesitation and motivate them to be confident with who they are.”

At the Singanamalla community center where the RDT team is assisting people with disabilities. ©RDT

Pictures and Text: Felita Viegas, adapted by Vicente Ferrer Foundation