13 Mar 2014

The World Spine Care organisation has so far treated 801 patients with spinal disorders in the country, the clinical coordinator Dr Geoff Outerbridge has said.

Based in Canada, the World Spine Care in 2011 signed with the Ministry of Health an agreement to work together to bring the highest quality spine care to Batswana.

Spinal disorders include back pain, neck pain, headaches, congenital deformities, degenerative changes, spinal infections, cancer and other less common disorders.

Dr Outerbridge said the non-profitable organisation had established two clinics in Botswana, one in Mahalapye at the district hospital and one in Shoshong and they provided service to patients from around the country.

Addressing the media on Wednesday, March 12, Dr Outerbridge said the facilities provided services for free and they worked closely with the general health system in Botswana.

Dr Outerbridge said low back pain alone was the leading cause of disability worldwide, while spinal pain contributed more to the global burden of diseases such as HIV, malaria, diabetes, stroke, lung cancer and depression among others.

He noted that World Spine Care was the first organisation in the world to address this global crisis outside of major cities and in Botswana they are developing a revolutionary model of care that would become the standard around the world. Dr Outerbridge said they have also implemented a scoliosis screening program in primary schools in Mahalapye where they identify spinal disorders in kids at an early stage.

A scholarship program was also established, with the first two Batswana students sent to Canada and the United States to train as spine care specialists and are expected to come back to take over the clinics.

The World Spine Care also organised the first ever spine care conference last year that brought leading experts from around the world in the field of spine care to Mahalapye.

However, all these programs were made possible through the support and vision of the Ministry of Health to ensure the success of World Spine Care, he said. Ends