Preventable Amputations, Part 1: Why Are Young Homeless People in Kensington Losing Limbs?
Trigger Warning: This article contains graphic images and descriptions of severed body parts as well as content dealing with substance use and addiction.
Doctors in Philadelphia are opting to amputate unsheltered homeless drug users when there are alternative options. This relatively new phenomenon has been made worse by the raging Opioid epidemic and the stigmas attached to its victims.
We sat with professionals witnessing the injustice firsthand in Kensington, Philadelphia, to bring our readers the most accurate and up-to-the-minute accounts. Learn why young people enduring homelessness and battling addiction are losing limbs through avoidable operations and how we can fight back.
Steph’s Story: Amputated at 23
It’s a brisk morning, and Sarah Laurel, the Executive Director of Savage Sisters Recovery , has taken a break from her rigorous routine of providing trauma-informed care to people recovering from substance use disorder to speak on an important topic – the amputation of her friend Steph, and the emotional wounds that left her reeling…