MCOP & Superhumans, Forging Healing Partnerships

By Louis Cabana August 18, 2023 Military Prosthetics, Operation Renew Prosthetics, Ukraine

MCOP & Superhumans Collaboration

In mid-August a team of four prosthetists from Medical Center Orthotics and Prosthetics in Silver Spring will journey to Lviv, Ukraine to train Ukrainian prosthetists and treat Ukrainian soldier amputees. Prior to the team’s arrival in Ukraine, MCOP shipped nearly 1,200 pounds of necessary equipment to the country.

This collaborative training and treatment will take place at the Superhumans Center, which inaugurated a large medical center on April 14. This event was attended by MCOP CEO Mike Corcoran and Senior Advisor Bill Endicott.

Our team of dedicated prosthetists will be at Superhumans for two weeks and expects to care for at least 10 Ukrainian soldiers with Superhumans prosthetists assisting and learning.  In September a Superhumans team is slated to come to Silver Spring for training in the most complicated cases.

The Superhumans Center provides specialized care to Ukrainians wounded by war. Its patients, including children, receive comprehensive care, free of charge, in such areas as prosthetics, rehabilitation, and mental health treatment. The First Lady of Ukraine, Olena Zelenska, is a member of the board.

Superhumans’ biggest donor is billionaire Howard Buffet, who to date has donated $11 million to the project.

‘Ukraine is fighting civilization’s battle of democracy against autocracy’

According to MCOP official Ian Fothergill who will lead the trip to Lviv, “Superhumans has done a great job in building an impressive medical facility, all with private sector funds.  Now we can give them the benefit of what we’ve learned about providing prosthetics for soldiers wounded by blast injuries.”

During the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, MCOP was the exclusive prosthetic contractor for the US military in Washington DC, caring for 1,100 US soldier amputees, and acquiring vast knowledge of how to care for blast injuries. MCOP’s eleven offices in the United States and one in Malta cares for about 200 civilian amputees a month.

For the last year, MCOP has had a program called Operation Renew Prosthetics that has been caring for Ukrainian soldier amputees in its Silver Spring, Boston, and Malta offices.  MCOP’s ultimate goal is to create its own ORP center in Ukraine so it can do even more to help the country recover.

As MCOP CEO Mike Corcoran put it, “Besides fighting for its independence and freedom, Ukraine is fighting civilization’s battle of democracy against autocracy and we need to help them!”