Tamara Shepherd was the guest speaker at the club meeting of Wednesday, 11 October 2023. Her presentation covered two topics: ‘Heal Africa’ and ‘Mercy Ships’.
Paul Harris Fellow
For Tamara’s important work in the Goma Jaipur Limb project, serving a time as a volunteer at the Heal Africa hospital, at her own cost and again for her work as a volunteer on a Mercy Ship as a physiotherapist, she was awarded a Paul Harris Fellow.
In response, Tamara sent the following note:
‘Thank you so much for awarding me the Paul Harris Fellow tonight. I feel humbled to have received this prestigious award.’
Tamara Shepherd was the guest speaker at the club meeting of Wednesday, 11 October 2023. Her presentation covered two topics: ‘Heal Africa’ and ‘Mercy Ships’.
Heal Africa is based in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo whose mission is to provide holistic care to its most vulnerable population especially women and children, who are most affected by the persistent armed conflicts in the region. It is also a centre of excellence for continuing education for health care workers.
Rotary has been actively involved in this area and the Rotary Club of Balwyn in particular, contributed funding for the Jaipur Limb project in Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo). Like so many developing countries there are many people in DR Congo who suffer because of amputated or deformed limbs. The causes are many, but include birth defects, communicable diseases such as leprosy and polio, non-communicable diseases such as vascular disorders and diabetes, snake bites, traumatic injuries, natural disasters and armed conflict. With severe limitations many become a burden to families, who already have very meagre resources, and are often condemned to spend their lives begging on the streets.
The Goma Jaipur Limb project arose from a visit to the Balwyn Rotary Club in 2014 by Tammy Shepherd. Tammy is a local physiotherapist who, for some years, has spent time at her own cost, as a volunteer at the Heal Africa hospital in Goma. She was responsible for setting up a physiotherapy unit there and was keen to also set up a prosthetics unit, with a small workshop that could modify and fit artificial legs which are not available at affordable cost in DR Congo.
Mercy Ships
Mercy Ships is an international development organisation that deploys hospital ships and volunteers to developing nations improving the quality of life for people living with the diseases of poverty, disfigurement, and disability, through direct medical services and building the capacities of healthcare systems to meet the needs of the future. According to The Lancet Commission’s Report on Global Surgery: 5 billion lack access to safe, timely and affordable surgery meaning 18.6 million people die unnecessarily each year.
The floating hospitals efficiently bring safe, sterile operating rooms and hospital beds, directly to people in need so our volunteer medical staff can provide free surgeries.
Mercy Ships delivers a customised three-year partnership model with every country it is invited to support.
Mercy Ships build medical capacity in every port training local doctors, providing equipment and opening medical facilities so that improved healthcare continues.
Volunteering with Mercy Ships will not only change the lives of those you serve, it will also change you. There are many ways to support Mercy Ships in its global medical mission. There is a need for both medical and non-medical volunteers. There are volunteer positions in a variety of areas including: housekeeping, galley, deck crew, doctors and nurses and everything in between. The volunteer opportunities are both long and short-term. Short-term volunteers can serve from two weeks to two years depending on the position and typically fill service roles or very specialised medical or technical positions. Long-term crew make an initial commitment of two years and typically fill positions that require more continuity and training.
