Mission to Provide Knee Replacement Surgery

We at Pontchartrain Orthopedics and Sports Medicine are pleased to share the contributions of our own Dr. Jeffrey J. Sketchler and Jeroen Kleine Staarman, PT  to the local non-profit group New Orleans Medical Mission Services (NOMMS). With the help of this organization, Dr. Sketchler and physical therapist Jeroen Klein Staarman traveled to the Dominican Republic on a mission to provide knee replacement surgery to the local community.

While in the Dominican Republic, Dr. Sketchler performed 17 knee replacement surgeries free of charge for patients who otherwise would not have been able to afford them. The patients were also provided with the equipment needed for their post-operative rehabilitation.

Physical therapy programs then assisted the patients to return to their prior level of function. On this mission, NOMMS brought a variety of other medical specialists, including an OBGYN team, ENT and plastic surgeons, general surgeons, and an eye clinic who provided eyeglasses to 1,600 people.

NOMMS is a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide medical equipment and care to people around the world who otherwise would lack access to the treatments they need. Established in 2001, NOMMS now consists of more than 600 volunteers who together have organized 38 missions and have provided thousands of people with an improved quality of life.

When NOMMS visits these disadvantaged communities, they help fill a void in medical care that would otherwise go ignored. Physicians willing to perform procedures like knee replacement surgery are particularly difficult for many people to find locally. Therefore, when a surgeon like Dr. Sketchler and a physical therapist like Mr. Staarman arrive to help, local providers often observe these special procedures in order to better serve their patients. Through educating local medical providers, NOMMS leaves a lasting impact on these communities.

If you would like to support a mission to provide knee replacement surgery, or any of NOMMS' other medical services,  there are several ways you can help.

The 2019 First Bank & Trust Golf Tournament, taking place on Friday, October 11 will benefit NOMMS. You can reserve tickets now by calling 504-392-1934. 

You can also volunteer or donate to help providers like Dr. Sketchler and Mr. Staarman reach other patients in need.