On Monday 27 July 2026, Handicap International (HI) Luxembourg announced the expansion of its prosthesis collection initiative with the Centre Hospitalier de Luxembourg (CHL), with the project now also extending to the hospital's paediatric department.
According to HI, the idea behind the project is to reduce waste while giving equipment that is still usable a second life by helping people regain independence in countries where the organisation operates.
Collection points have been set up throughout the CHL, where patients can donate used prostheses and orthoses. After being carefully refurbished, the equipment will be sent to countries where access to medical devices is often limited, said the HI.
HI explained that, in Luxembourg, the La Caisse Nationale de Santé (CNS) allows insured amputees to replace their prosthesis every three years. However, the components, particularly the mechanical parts, have a minimum lifespan of ten years but are generally discarded when a replacement is provided, despite some being worth several hundred euros.
To prevent this waste, the organisation has introduced a refurbishment system enabling amputees in less privileged countries to benefit from high-quality prosthetic devices. High-tech components recovered in Europe are refurbished by volunteer experts before being incorporated into prosthetic devices produced locally in the countries where HI operates.
For HI Luxembourg, volunteer orthopaedic prosthetist Jonathan Thomas dismantles donated prostheses in his laboratory in Thionville before sending the reusable components to a dedicated warehouse near Lyon, France. Through this international chain of solidarity, 550 prostheses were processed in 2024. The organisation noted that demand continues to grow and the initiative is expected to expand rapidly.
More than 30 million people worldwide require a prosthetic device, yet only 5% to 15% have access to one. According to HI, access remains particularly limited because orthopaedic components are often unavailable or prohibitively expensive.
Aurélien Le Gouanvic, Project Monitoring Officer at Handicap International Luxembourg, explained: "This refurbishment initiative has already enabled dozens of people to regain their mobility, take part in society again and stand on their own feet once more. It is a small gesture that makes a big difference."
In 2024, prosthetic components were sent to Uganda, Rwanda, Togo, Cameroon, Ethiopia and Yemen. In Yemen, the shipment will allow students from the country's first class of orthopaedic prosthetists to practise their profession using different types of components.
Private individuals can donate used prostheses by bringing them to the CHL or directly to the offices of HI Luxembourg, added the organisation.
