Senior Health Science major Margaret Loehnig took a trip during the summer of 2011 to Cape Town, South Africa, along with 20 other Truman students. The trip was one aspect of a course entitled Democracy and Human Rights in South Africa, led by sociology professor Dr. Elaine McDuff. In Cape Town, Margaret completed an internship at Maitland Cottage Home (MCH). MCH is an inpatient pediatric orthopedic hospital in which children may receive surgery for numerous conditions affecting their bones, including (but not limited to) leg length discrepancies, Blount’s, cerebral palsy, clubfoot, tuberculosis of the joints and/or spine, hip disorders, and fractures due to motor vehicle accidents. The children then recover in the wards and receive schooling and physical therapy.
Margaret’s job as an intern was to observe the work of the physical therapist, assisting whenever possible. She learned how to measure crutches for the patients, became familiar with several assistive devices that may be used in therapeutic settings, and observed the stretches the physical therapist performed with the patients. She also had the unique opportunity to help doctors put plaster casts on patients with clubfeet.
Margaret’s favorite part of the experience was interacting with the children at MCH. “They treated me as a playmate, teacher, and physical therapist combined, and I learned just as much from them as they learned from me. Most of the children were barely discouraged by their physical disabilities; they approached all challenges with energy and dignity. Even in the moments when they were being naughty or bossing me around, the children at MCH never failed to put a smile on my face. On my last day, they all wrote me letters and drew me pictures. It was painful to say goodbye.”