The project selected by the Trustees for World Leprosy Day 2023 is in aid of The Leprosy Mission’s Dare to Dream: Zero Leprosy in Ethiopia initiative.
Dare to Dream will introduce a new model to prevent leprosy transmission, and train and equip healthcare workers to diagnose, treat and refer patients to specialist services.
Our aim is to raise £10,000 across the eleven Commanderies of the Grand Priory of England and Wales. This money will be used to purchase and set up two L-PRF centrifuge machines (£6,000) and to establish a telemedicine programme in Ethiopia (£4,000).
You can read more about L-PRF and the project in this report from TLM.
Update!
We are delighted to report that members raised the magnificent sum of £24,000 in support of this project.
Peter Waddup, CEO of TLM, wrote:
“ I’d like to thank everyone at The St Lazarus Charitable Trust for your incredibly generous donation of £24,000, which your members worked so hard to raise for the SLCT World Leprosy Appeal 2023, Ethiopia.
Your grant will go towards our Dare to Dream: Zero Leprosy, Ethiopia, project. While Dare to Dream will address the high numbers of children being diagnosed with leprosy and disability among women, your funding will be used specifically to purchase two L-PRF centrifuge machines and the set-up and capital costs for medical tele-consultations.
L-PRF (Leukocyte-Platelet Rich Fibrin) treatment is showing dramatic improvements in healing times for ulcers. Typically, chronic ulcers are completely healed in a tenth of the time it would normally take. It is being successfully used in Nepal, and thanks to your generosity, this cutting-edge treatment will now be introduced into Ethiopia.
I am delighted to let you know that we will be training our staff in Ethiopia in September 2023 on the use of L-PRF.”
A further update on the roll-out of the L-PRF project can be found here.