Nick Mason caught up with leading consultant podiatric surgeon Lewis Stuttard after his recent mission to Guatemala.
Lewis Stuttard describes a medical mission to Guatemala as the “most profound experience of my career”.
Lewis was invited to join the trip by long-time friend and surgical mentor Dr Steven Miller, one of the US’s foremost foot and ankle surgeons.
While the main focus of the mission was to treat people suffering from neglected clubfoot, they also encountered a number of other surgical conditions ranging from bunions to gunshot wounds!
Lewis, who was accompanied on the trip by his nurse wife Rita, said: “Steven came to stay with me last year and asked if I would be interested in joining a mission, something we had talked about over the years. I was coming up to retirement and I thought, as I now had the time and it was something I had always wanted to do, that it would be a fantastic opportunity and experience.
“Neglected clubfoot is a serious problem in underdeveloped countries such as Guatemala. It rarely gets picked up early as in western countries and when it does, they have the problem of not having the expertise or facilities to treat the condition.
“It is thought to be partly genetic but malnutrition also plays a part. The indigenous Mayan people often live in very basic conditions with a poor diet of mainly corn. Clubfoot has a profound effect on the lives of these children as they have significant problems with mobility, finding it difficult to family income. Their life is pretty awful in reality.
“When a mission such as ours arrives, the local people are so grateful. Word spreads quickly with people travelling for hours to get to us. Many are willing to wait for days to be seen.”
The mission was overseen by another US podiatrist, Dr Will Bogel, who gave up his prestigious job as a surgeon in Seattle to move to Guatemala to devote his life to children in the region. He has since established an orphanage and Montessori School, Opal House. Dr Louis Jimenez, a third leading podiatric surgeon from the US, was also on the trip, along with leading paediatric orthopaedic surgeon Dr Libby Webber.
During the mission’s three and a half weeks in the region, they were able to treat more than 60 patients. They used a mix of talectomy and posteromedial release techniques to treat patients with neglected clubfoot.
Lewis said: “One patient’s story, which had nothing to do with clubfoot, will live with me forever. A man in his 40s drove to us for four hours from Guatemala City after suffering a fractured femur, infected from a gunshot wound.
“He told us how he had been injured when his car was hijacked and he fought off a gang trying to kidnap his daughter for a life of prostitution. He saved his daughter but his life was potentially shattered. It was hugely rewarding to be able to treat his injuries.”
The mission was made possible thanks to the generosity of a large number of individuals and companies including Algeos, Wright Medical Technology, C-Pro Direct and Osteotec who all made medical donations towards the trip. Lewis was also deluged with other items such as children’s clothes and toys as well as financial contributions from colleagues that combined to make Operation Guatemala such an outstanding success. Fundraising for essential medical items was difficult as people in the UK do not see the effects of clubfoot unlike cancer or Ebola which has much greater awareness.
As for Lewis, he has now got the bug and is already planning his next mission.
He concluded: “The mission was a real eye-opener, it was the most profound experience of my professional career. It was humbling, challenging, exciting and rewarding – all at the same time.”