Rebuild was set up to support the large number of patients with congenital and acquired limb deformity who are treated at King’s College Hospital’s Limb Reconstruction Unit. Treatment for such deformity is often prolonged and requires a good deal of courage.
Mr Graeme Groom began the service in 1993 when he was appointed at King’s. Six patients with Ilizarov frames came with him from his previous consultant appointment at the Queen Elizabeth Military Hospital.
This Limb Reconstruction Service calls on the expertise of these surgeons, but also on two full-time specialist nurses, one full-time specialist physiotherapist, specialised theatre staff and equipment,surgeons-in-training, a psychiatrist and a psychologist.
Surgeons in this field from across the UK have a specialist society, under the auspices of the
British Orthopaedic Association (BOA). called the
British Limb Reconstruction Society (BLRS) and the surgeons at KCH are all members. The BLRS organises annual meetings to discuss issues relating to this field, and present papers from similar centres.
KCH’s Orthopaedic Department, as one of the busiest tertiary units in the UK, was an ideal base to set up Rebuild. The charity has received considerable support from the surgeons and patients and from many volunteers.