CSC's Mission Statement
CSC aims to improve the quality of life for disabled poor people by providing free rehabilitation surgery. Integral to this mission is a program of training local surgeons and health workers, focusing on the development of sustainable surgical services for Cambodians.
Around 500 million people, or 12% of the world's population, suffer from some sort of disability. Disabilities bring misery, reduce economic status, destroy social integration and cause untold suffering through stigmatization and marginalization from society.
In the last 30 years international agencies have made great efforts to assist with health-care in developing countries focusing on the principles of 'primary health care'; e.g. sanitation, clean water, and Maternal & Child Health (MCH) Surgery has been considerably under-emphasized as 'too sophisticated and expensive' for widespread impact.
However, CSC's experience shows that:
- Safe, simple surgery is easy to organise, can be cheap (US$35-$200 per operation), and highly effective.
- The results of successful surgery are beneficial to the patient, gratifying to the surgeon, and the technology is practical.
- The costs are sustainable for developing countries and are similar to the costs for medical treatment of chronic diseases.
- Locally trained surgeons can readily learn how to do the procedures.
CSC demonstrates the enormous benefits of simple, safe, rehabilitation surgery in developing countries by providing surgery and training programs on a daily basis.