Clinic making a difference in the Solomons

MEDIA RELEASE
For immediate release 28 August 2014

Hawke’s Bay appearance medicine clinic making a difference in the Solomon Islands

Hawke’s Bay’s leading appearance and cosmetic medicine practice, Peak Appearance has partnered with Interplast Australia and New Zealand to sponsor a nurse educator training programme in the Solomon Islands.

Interplast is a not-for-profit organisation that provides free surgical treatment to people in developing countries who otherwise could not afford it. Its teams of medical volunteers including surgeons, anesthetists and nurses provide treatment to people affected by burns, trauma, tumours, cleft lips and cleft palates.

The decision to financially support Interplast’s valuable work was an easy one for Peak Appearance owner, Lara Molloy who knows first-hand the challenges of being born with a cleft lip and the life-changing benefits that surgery can bring.

“We are very lucky in New Zealand that if you are born with a defect, there is free surgical care available. I had access to the best surgeons but unfortunately for those in countries like the Solomon Islands, help is not readily available and people have to live with their disfigurements. Through the relationship with Interplast, I am able to “give back” as a business. And I have a genuine desire to help people as I was helped,” explains Lara.

Peak Appearance’s sponsorship of Interplast’s nurse educator training involves a series of lectures, interactive discussions and practical hands-on workshops focused on principles of infection control, wound management, the diabetic foot, and patient assessment. Additionally, several nurses will be supported to participate in an upcoming volunteer programme to the Pacific region to conduct a series of operating and post care clinics that will be offered to patients waiting for highly skilled procedures.

For Interplast, Peak Appearance’s sponsorship will help to continue the organisation’s efforts in the Solomons that are making a real difference to its people.
“The partnership with Peak Appearance provides an ideal opportunity for business and community to come together to make a long-term difference in the Solomon Islands and with their support, we can continue to provide essential training to local nurse educators with the view to having these nurses train their peers in the future. It’s a great legacy for the business sector to be involved in,” says Interplast’s Corporate and Community Relations Manager Amanda Whitty.

The relationship between Lara’s appearance medicine business and the work of Interplast is closely linked.

“Every day we work with clients to improve imperfections and remove blemishes and it’s amazing to see the tangible improvement in a person’s confidence. I know that if my disfigurement had been left without the opportunity to have surgery, my future would have looked quite different and my confidence would have been damaged. These children in the Solomon Islands deserve the same chance as I was given and I am committed to help that happen,” says Lara.

Over the next few months Lara and the Peak Appearance team will be presenting information sessions and conducting workshops in the Hawke’s Bay area to raise awareness of the work that Interplast is carrying out.

ENDS

About Interplast
Interplast has worked for more than three decades in 25 countries and has performed more than 21,000 live changing operations. Its team of 600 volunteers has conducted 37,000 consultations with the assistance of valued partners including Lara Molloy and Peak Appearance. For more information about Interplast visit www.interplast.org.au

Interplast has been delivering programs to the Solomon Islands since 1984 with a focus on providing treatment to patients, and training the existing medical and nursing workforce to competently and confidently treat patients both pre and postoperatively. As with all Interplast’s work there is a strong focus on building local capacity to create sustainable health systems in developing nations.

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