Jim Scott, MD, orthopedic surgeon at Georgia Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Clinic in Tifton, Ga., has been traveling to Guatemala and El Salvador for over two decades in an effort to bring modern medicine to developing countries, reports The Tifton Gazette.
Here are five things to know:
1. Dr. Scott is the founder of Georgia Sports Medicine, and he and his staff perform surgery at Tift Regional Medical Center.
2. Dr. Scott first traveled to Central America to perform hip replacements in Guatemala, where nearly 75 percent of the population lives in poverty, according to the report.
3. Dr. Scott saw that the medical facilities were outdated and not properly equipped, an experience he told The Tifton Gazette was "eye-opening."
4. A local Guatemalan physician and Dr. Scott developed a partnership and created a foundation named Fundaorto to provide orthopedic surgeries to Guatemala.
5. The foundation has provided 4,000 hip and knee replacements to patients who would not have otherwise received them.