Zimmer Mobile Learning Centre reaches Mangalore

Zimmer Mobile Learning Centre reaches Mangalore

Mangalore Today News Network

Press Release

Mangalore, April 10: There has been a remarkable increase in the growth of the elderly population. The commonest obstacle for elderly to carry out activities of daily living is the problem of joint-pain and decreased mobility. Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis, affecting millions in India. According to orthoapedicians, the most affected joint is the knee. The incidence in women is also high and most of them come in a fairly advanced stage of the disease.

While there is high incidence of osteoarthritis, awareness about the disease is very low compared to awareness about diseases like diabetes, HIV and cancer. Continuing with its mission to raise awareness on arthritis, the Zimmer Mobile Learning Centre, a state-of-the art van, reached Karnataka on 6 April.

In the city, the mobile van was parked in Unity Hospital, Tejasvini Hospital and AJ Institute of Medical Sciences where orthosurgeons and paramedics were trained on joint replacements and trauma procedures.

Earlier, on 6 April, in Manipal, the mobile van was parked in Kasturba Medical College where 26 orthosurgeons and PG students were given similar trainings.  The Zimmer Mobile Learning Centre provides state-of-the-art training to young orthosurgeons and paramedical staff in caring for patients in need of basic orthopaedic surgeries related to arthroplasty as well as trauma procedures.

Through its numerous public forums, the Zimmer Mobile Learning Centre also provides patients with information and insight into the leading edge treatment for joint replacements to help them make educated decisions about their course of treatment.

After giving a demonstration on the saw bone models, Dr Sachidanand Rai, head of orthopaedics department, Unity Hospital, said, "Arthritis is on the rise, and in our hospital, we do about five to six joint replacement surgeries a month." He further added, "With such training, junior orthosurgeons and operating room staff can explore and test their knowledge of orthopaedic instrument and implant sets with hands-on technology."

 "Most of the osteoarthritis patients, who come to us for treatment, are in an advanced stage of the disease. For such patients, we need cutting-edge technology. In view of this, the Zimmer Mobile Learning Centre is excellent as it goes a long way in educating our orthopedic surgeons and resident doctors on the latest orthopaedic techniques," said Dr Sandeep Vijay, Assistant Professor, department of orthopaedics, Kasturba Medical College & Hospital, Manipal. Dr Sharat Rao, head of orthopaedics department, also visited the mobile van. The van is part of the Zimmer Institute’s initiative to offer quality  educational opportunities to orthopedic surgeons at different levels of learning, with sensitivity towards learner needs, language and culture. Zimmer is a global leader in restoring mobility to people suffering from knee, hip, shoulder and back pain through its first-rate orthopedic products and solutions. This initiative is not just restricted to select
hospitals in certain cities but would also extend and involve Resident Welfare Associations, clubs, parks and seminar venues where experts deliver talks on arthritis.

Sanjay Banerjee, Managing Director, Zimmer India Pvt ltd, said, "This initiative is yet another ontribution by Zimmer in its role as responsible corporate  citizen towards capacity building in form of trained surgeons and paramedical personnel enabling them to serve orthopedic patients better. For this target group which otherwise may be constrained by time away from workplace for attending such  programmes, it shall provide a cost-effective access to high quality learning opportunities and updated training curriculum."

The van has a mock operation theatre setup, a full array of display products including gender knee for women, real-time instruments and sawbones, audio-visual aids, pull-down workstations, backlit display frames and seating. Besides educating orthopedic surgeons and paramedical personnel, the van also conducts community seminars and increase awareness among the general public.

The van also has on display and demo Zimmer’s state of the art solutions for things such as knee replacement (high flexibility knee) which accommodates higher degree of bending for the patients undergoing total knee replacement, and Gender Knee - world’s first and only knee replacement shaped to fit a woman’s anatomy.

The journey of the van was flagged off in Delhi in a small ceremony on 17 September, 2010. Training over 2500 orthosurgeons and paramedical staff, the van has so far covered 18 states, including UP, West Bengal, Goa, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi, Punjab, Jammu, Uttarakhand, Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and major orthopaedic conferences in Kolkata, Goa, Kanha and Jaipur. The van will also be stationed at ISHKS 2011, (5th National Congress of Indian Society of HIP & Knee Surgeons)  Bangalore .

Sanjay Lohani, Marketing Director, Zimmer, said, "So far the response has been overwhelming and much appreciated, and we are hopeful that the Zimmer Mobile Learning Centre will continue to record the same kind of enthusiasm." The mobile van will next stop in Bangalore on 9 April before heading for Mysore and Hyderabad.