High cost of prosthetics is the greatest challenge faced by amputees in Nigeria.
On this year’s Amputee Awareness Month, Hope Alive Possibilities Initiative (HAPI) showing concern on the affordability of the prosthetics, called on government to subside the cost prosthetics for amputees because without it, life is meaningless for amputees.
Aver Akighir, The founder and Executive Director of HAPI made the call during an event organized by the organization in collaboration with Danikal Management Consult with support from SUN-TECH Prosthetics LTD.
The event with the theme : Inspire to Elevate brought together amputees from different part of the country and other Stakeholders in the disability community.
Aver Akighir told TQM that the event is about creating awareness about amputees.
She informed that April 1 to April 30 is Amputee Awareness Month so it is a month to create awareness about the challenges faced by amputees. Drawing attention of the relevant stakeholders to issues concerning amputees and how they can be addressed.
It is also an opportunity for amputees to meet, share their stories/experiences.
“Encourage ourselves especially those who became amputees recently, learning how to overcome the stigma” she added.
She pointed out some of challenges faced by amputees in Nigeria:
Integration after loss of limbs: it is always difficult adjusting to new condition, acceptance from you and the society.
Access to Assistive Devices: High cost of Prosthetics made it difficult for majority of the amputees to afford them. So government should subside the cost so that amputees can afford them.
Joshua Hope, an amputee told TQM that expensive nature of prosthetics has made it impossible for her to change her prosthetics every five years which is the lifespan of prosthetics. This has led to harm on her body, finding it difficult to continue using them because it is affecting her body structure and so on.
“If it is affordable, I will be changing them before the expiring date of five years to avoid complications that comes with it which sometimes lead to surgery”.
She suggested that government should partner with companies who manufactures these prosthetics to subside the rate.
Eva Chisom, an amputee and a creative writer shared her experience on discrimination with TQM when she told a story on how she quit her job because her boss wouldn’t want her to expose her prosthetics around the workplace.
She called for more inclusion and acceptance of persons with disabilities before employers at the workplaces.
She informed us that lack of assistive devices have been preventing many amputees from engaging in skill acquisition because it is limiting their access to opportunities.
She suggested that apart from making assistive devices affordable to amputees, they should also be engaged in skill development, not just hair dressing, tailoring, bakery but field of journalism, politics etc.
Chukwunyere Kelsey Nwosu, an amputee and ICT expert told TQM that after he was amputated 23 years ago, he didn’t give up even though the quest to restore his hand took so much from his family. He was determined to make it and fortunately, someone came to his rescue and today, he is a proud graduate and he is self employed, working on information technology even though he couldn’t get a job that he so much desired.
Speaking further, he advised other persons with disabilities to jettison entitlement mentality and learn a skill that will help them stand on their own and become what they desire to be.
He encouraged newly amputees and yet to be amputees to see disability as another phase of life and whatever that may have happened is not more than them but a challenge to give more to humanity.
“Suicide is not an option because what people say about you doesn’t matter, it is what you said about yourself is what defines you” he added.
Comrade Chris Obiora Agbo, The Executive Director, The Qualitative Magazine in a goodwill message, commended HAPI and Amputee Coalition of Nigeria for the gathering and acknowledged the strength of all amputees for being strong and successful managing their situation because it is not easy for someone who have been walking or making use of his or her hands, all of a sudden, he or she is no longer using them. Unlike Polio survivors who have never experienced the other side.
He called on the government, well meaning Nigerians and Companies to come to the aid of amputees especially in the areas of the prosthetics.
He encouraged amputees to be bolder, confront their fears and challenges and work harder because no matter the challenges, there is light in the end of the tunnel.
Mrs. Ikaron Udo, a public speaking coach and the CEO, Danikal Management Consult in her presentation encouraged the amputees to believe in themselves and discover where they are good at, work on it and be the best in what they do and public will no longer see their inabilities and show more interest in what they are offering.
The event witnessed experience sharing from the amputees in attendance and SUN-TECH Prosthetics LTD team were also on ground to educate them about prosthetics and what they should do to get the right prosthetics for themselves.
