SARA DRUM - Graduate School of Physiotherapy, University of Otago - class of 1996

2013

Courtesy of Sara Drum

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Sara Drum has spent a good deal of her professional life working under the umbrella of the Physical Rehabilitation Programme of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) providing physical rehabilitation services in some of the most dangerous cities and countries in the world: Pyongyang (Democratic Peoples’ Republic of Korea) Gaza City (Palestine), Peshawar (Pakistan), and Jalalabad and Mazar-I-Sharif (Afghanistan). Currently she is working for the ICRC in the cities of Asella and Mekelle (Ethiopia).
In her various roles, Sara aims to improve the quality of physiotherapy and physical rehabilitation services within the ICRC centres. The main recipients of physical rehabilitation are those in need of prostheses, orthoses or mobility aids (walking aids, wheel chairs or assistive devices). She is also involved in management and administration of the centres.
The rewards for working with the ICRC are many and varied. Sara acknowledges two: the ability to work alongside local physiotherapy staff in local communities where resources are often scarce, and as opportunities arise, developing new approaches to overcome challenging physical conditions.