The moment Dr Sonam decided he wanted a career in plastic and reconstructive surgery not only changed his life, but the lives of countless Bhutanese patients in urgent need of help.
Dr Sonam Jamtsho was undertaking his General Surgery residency in Bhutan in 2014 when he assisted a visiting Interplast team.
“I scrubbed in and we operated the whole day on a 22-year-old burns patient. I could see how much the patient’s appearance and function were being changed during that procedure. The next day, the health minister came to the hospital and discussed building a local team. That made me want to work in that field.”
With the help of incredible supporters like you, Dr Jamtsho travelled to Adelaide for a 12-month residency at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, where he was trained and mentored by surgeons who also volunteer with Interplast. He attended conferences and training programs and also undertook a fellowship in India and Nepal.
“Here in Bhutan, we do not have a specialist plastic and reconstructive unit that takes care of these kinds of patients. So, I have learned to treat the burns as early as possible, unlike previously, when we kept dressing them and watched how the wound healed”.
Through Dr Jamtsho’s training, he has been able to develop new treatments and procedures for burn patients in Bhutan, and this has considerably favoured the outcome for the patients.
Asked what difference this work makes for the local community, Dr Jamtsho said, “It makes a massive difference. Not just to our patient’s overall recovery, but to their mental wellbeing and their overall financial situation too.”
By helping train local surgical partners like Dr Jamtsho, you are helping increase their skills and knowledge, so it’s not just a better outcome for patients in the short term, but Dr Jamtsho and his colleagues can train their own local teams. Because you care, there is more specialist burns surgery, faster help for patients, and more lives changed. Thank you.
