Two orthopedic surgeons from Spokane, Wash.-based Northwest Orthopaedic Specialists will travel to Cuba to perform around 65 joint replacements for arthritis patients on Nov. 6, The Spokesman-Review reports.
Three things to know:
1. Kirk Reichard, MD, and Jonathan Keeve, MD, will join a U.S. volunteer medical team to perform hip and knee replacements at a hospital in Havana, Cuba.
2. The team consists of about 40 medical professionals from Operation Walk, a nonprofit organization that provides free orthopedic surgeries for patients in developing countries.
3. Operation Walk was founded by orthopedic surgeon Lawrence Dorr, MD, in 1994. The organization's first mission was also in Havana, where surgeons replaced 45 joints in three days.