Raksmeymutta working with Kuy Navy, a patient at the Kampong Cham centre who was amputated after a mine explosion. | © T. Mayer / HI
How many hands has she held to help people up and down the steps to the centre? How many bodies has she supported on the parallel bars? How many words of encouragement has she given? How many prostheses has she adjusted?
"With my work, I can help many people to return to a dignified and happy life, because rehabilitation plays a very important role. It helps to improve their quality of life and facilitate their inclusion, and I'm proud to be a part of that.”
Raksmeymutta Nguon, 24, is from Phnom Penh. This young professional is determined to ensure that rehabilitation leads to greater comfort and autonomy for her patients. After starting out as an orthoprosthetist, Mutta is now a rehabilitation project officer. She has been working at the Kampong Cham centre for three years.
"In the beginning, most of the people who came to our rehabilitation centre were mine victims but fortunately, with our country gradually being decontaminated, they are becoming rarer. Today, we mainly see people who have been in a road accident or have had a health problem, such as a stroke, or children with developmental delay," she explains.
Among Raksmeymutta’s many cases, one in particular stands out in her memory – that of a mother and daughter who came to the rehabilitation centre after being in the same road accident. They had both lost a leg and were desperate at the thought of never being able to walk normally again.
"Nothing compares to the love a mother has for her daughter. I remember that no matter how much pain and fear she felt, the mother kept smiling and encouraging her daughter to stay positive."
She is filled with emotion as she remembers fitting their very first prostheses, and she still treasures their photos in her mobile phone.
"Thanks to their prostheses and the rehabilitation care they received, they were able to start living independently again and had every chance of finding their place in society. In fact, the mother ended up running a small business from home and the daughter went back to school. I remember the mother saying to me: "Thank you so much HI for bringing my daughter and me back to life, you saved our lives". I was overwhelmed by their gratitude towards me and my colleagues."
