Srdc.org.hk
Title
THE SOCIETY FOR THE RELIEF OF DISABLED CHILDREN
Description
The Duchess of Kent Children's Hospital at Sandy Bay was founded by the Society for the Relief of Disabled Children in the mid 50's. It was the brainchild of Professor Hodgson and a group of charitable businessmen from Hong Kong. Initially called the Sandy Bay Convalescent Home, it is situated in Pokfulam, by the sea, about one kilometer from Queen Mary Hospital. Do not be deceived by its name, as even in the early days, the bay that it stands on is full of rocks and relatively little sand.
The Home initially had fifty beds and was usually occupied by patients with tuberculosis of the spine. The standard treatment for tuberculosis of the spine then was anti-tuberculous therapy with bed rest for months, often up to a year. Even with the advent of the Hong Kong Operation of Anterior Spinal Debridement and Fusion with Bone Graft, developed by Professor Hodgson, the patients had to be kept in bed until the grafts incorporated. In those days, the disease was usually extensive, requiring long bone grafts, and the Home provided an ideal place for long term convalescence.
Around the time when the Home opened, the poliomyelitis virus attacked Hong Kong, inflicting a significant number of children and many of these were left with residual problems in the skeleton. The Society for the Relief of Disabled Children responded to this by expanding the Home, which included a physiotherapy department with an indoor heated hydrotherapy pool. This was one of the first in Hong Kong and was in anticipation of the demand of physical treatment that would be required of these children. The extension opened in 1962 and fifty beds were added. This addition proved invaluable as it not only provided the appropriate treatment for those in real need, but also provided a significant relief on the strain on hospital beds for children in the general hospitals.
Languages
中文 (Chinese)
Contact
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