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Vietnamese Boy Treated for Burn Trauma
Yu Chien-hsing from Chiayi County
(Translated by Yan Huang, Northern California)
Kuan Shih-cheng, a twelve-year-old Vietnamese
boy of Chinese descent, was burned in a fire at his home when
he was four years old. Over the past eight years, his limbs
have grown crooked, due to lack of proper treatment and rehabilitation
in Vietnam. Even though his left leg was in especially bad condition
and showed signs of infection and necrosis, his family could
not afford to send him for proper care. Through the assistance
of Tzu Chi members in Vietnam, he was once checked by Vietnamese
physicians and was advised to have his leg amputated. In order
to help him get more efficient and less traumatic treatment,
Tzu Chi members arranged for him and his mother to fly to Tzu
Chi General Hospital in Dalin, Chiayi County, Taiwan, on May
21. After an initial examination by assistant superintendent
Chien Shou-hsin, reconstructive surgery was scheduled. Dr. Chien
observed that Shih-cheng did not need to have his leg amputated.
Shih-cheng lives with his siblings, parents, uncles and grandparents
in a small home in Vietnam. His parents earn their living by
doing manual labor and cannot afford basic medical care. When
Shih-cheng was four, a chemical explosion ignited by candles
and pesticides caused the total destruction of his home and
burned a large percentage of skin and tissue on his face (except
the eyes), buttocks, and all four limbs. During the years since
then, he has been schooled at home by his mother. Shih-cheng
studies hard at home and can speak three languages. His disfigured
legs and face made him fear that he might not have the courage
to go back to regular school again.
On May 25, when Shih-cheng went into the operating room in Dalin
Hospital, he took with him the blessings of his family and all
Tzu Chi people. In three hours of reconstructive surgery, Dr.
Chien and his team successfully cleaned up his wounds and grafted
skin to his legs and face. Shih-cheng would be able to open
his mouth wider and use his left ankle and calf more efficiently,
as well as his right thigh and buttocks. Now he must wait two
weeks for the surgery sites to heal perfectly without infection,
and then begin rehabilitation therapy. It will definitely be
a great moment when Shih-cheng and his family see him walking
on his feet again!
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