Boston Clinicians Are Headed to the Dominican Republic for a Medical Mission

Operation Walk Boston is a program from Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) and Partners in Health that performs free joint replacement surgeries for patients in the Dominican Republic. To date, the program—which began in 2007—has helped more than 300 patients, and more than 10,000 pounds of patient care supplies and devices has been shipped for the missions.

This year, a team of 58 volunteers (surgeons, nurses, anesthesiologists, physical therapists, orthopedic residents, and medical students) will travel to the Hospital General de la Plaza de la Salud in Santo Domingo on March 11 to perform at least 65 scheduled joint replacement surgeries for approximately 58 patients. It’s the group’s eighth annual mission to the country, which helps people with arthritis and joint disease who would not normally have the means to receive this type of surgery.

The group is led by Dr. Thomas Thornhill, chief of orthopedic surgery at BWH, whose program not only gives patients the gift of mobility, but it also trains and collaborates with medical staff in the Dominican Republic.

For more information or to donate, visit operationwalkboston.org