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A
Brief History
The Overseas Specialist
Surgeons of Australia (OSSAA) was initiated in 2002, but was instigated in the
early 1990s through Dr John C Hargrave AO MBE. Dr Hargrave a respected leprosy
specialist, hand and burns surgeon based in the Northern Territory from 1956,
identified the need for reconstructive surgical services in neighbouring Eastern
Indonesia. Many people in this region suffer from severe physical deformities
and disabilities arising from leprosy, burns, trauma, poliomyelitis and
congenital defects. For these people there was (and still is) no ready solution
as surgical services are not available in rural areas and remedial operations in
the main centres cannot be afforded.
In the early 1990s, Dr Hargrave led small volunteer teams of specialist doctors
and nurses into Timor under Northmed, providing reconstructive surgical programs
in rural areas. In 1995, Dr Hargrave incorporated a surgical group as ASEA Rehab
[Australia South-East Asia Rehabilitation Foundation], a Northern Territory
based organisation comprising mainly local specialists and supporters. Over time
the team composition expanded to include more interstate specialists and nurses,
particularly from South Australia. When retiring in 2000, Dr Hargrave supported
the re-forming of Asea Rehab as a South Australian registered organisation (with
national membership) to maintain and expand the highly valued reconstructive
programs undertaken in East Timor, West Timor and West Papua. The transition
from Asea Rehab to OSSAA was completed by 2002.
Since its formation, OSSAA has through the magnificent volunteering spirit of
the doctors and nurses and the generosity of its members, supporters and medical
suppliers (plus some government funding) continued to grow - the number of
consultations and operations are now approaching 800 and 400 respectively per
year. For reasons of continuity, trust, and local capacity building OSSAA has
maintained its focus in Flores, East and West Timor. Vice President Dr Mark
Moore AM has, as did Dr Hargrave previously, guided the organisation in its
medical assistance. Plastics surgery has been augmented with general and
orthopaedic surgery, physiotherapy, speech pathology and dentistry. OSSAA has
been granted tax deductibility status by the Federal Government.
For up-to-date information on OSSAA achievements please visit the other parts of
this site, particularly ‘Management’ and ‘Team Reports’
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