But for Polson orthopedic surgeon Dr. Timothy Browne, 46, and his wife and radiologic technologist, Julie Browne, 43, their voyages to faraway countries over the last decade represent missions of mercy, not time for R&R.
"There's a chronic need in the developing nations where orthopedic medicine and other medical care is not available," Tim Browne said in a recent interview.
"With the tsunami, the needs have basically overwhelmed the system," Browne said.
The Brownes, now of Big Sky Orthopedics and Sports Medicine in Polson, have traveled often to developing nations to volunteer their orthopedic skills to countries in crisis and people in need during the last 10 years. They are Missoula natives and Sentinel High School graduates, and for five years had an orthopedic practice in Missoula.
But in the mid-1990s, they got the "mission bug," Browne said, and embarked on Christian missionary outreach, reflecting the couple's faith.
"There's a scripture that says, 'If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.' That's why Julie and I have sacrificed a lot to go out and help other people," Browne said.
Over the years, they have visited the Amazon, Central America, Borneo, Philippines, China, Ukraine, West Africa and even North Korea, serving as medical volunteers. They have been associated with such respected international relief organizations as Mercy Ships, Operation Blessing and Hope Force International.
Indeed, for two of those years, the Brownes lived full-time aboard a Mercy Ship, an ocean-going vessel with a fully equipped orthopedics surgical facility on board. They brought along their three school-age sons, living year-round in cramped cabins aboard the ship. The boys attended school on board with other volunteers' children and helped their parents when they went ashore to provide medical services.
The Brownes returned to open a medical practice in Polson a couple of years ago. But after the tsunami disaster, the mission bug struck again, and since January, they have been working on a new medical mission.
For this latest trip, the Brownes have organized a tsunami-relief effort involving a team of orthopedic surgery specialists, including three surgeons, two nurses, an X-ray technologist and support staff. They plan to visit Sri Lanka, an island nation in the Indian Ocean where more than 31,000 people were killed and thousands more seriously injured by the huge tsunami waves.
The need for orthopedic services is great, the Brownes said, because there are only about 30 orthopedic surgeons in the entire nation of 19 million people.
The medical team will visit hospitals in two cities in Sri Lanka, leaving May 28 and returning in mid-June. Browne and his team will perform surgery on victims of the devastating wave. But more importantly, they also will teach the few surgeons trained in orthopedics in hospitals in the two largest cities in Sri Lanka, Colombo and Jaffna, how to use implantable devices to help injured and disabled people regain control over their lives.
To prepare for the trip, Browne prevailed upon one of the world's largest orthopedic-implant and trauma device manufacturers to donate $1 million in equipment for the mercy trip.
"Dr. Browne has worked with us in the past, and he approached us again in January to help after the tsunami. We were happy to help," said Victor Rocha, a Smith & Nephew Co. spokesman in Memphis. The donated hardware consists of implant devices such as plates and screws that help mend broken bones and joints.
The Brownes and other members of the surgical team are responsible for their own transportation, lodging and daily expenses. So they have started fund-raising efforts in their local communities to help defray the costs.
They have partnered with an international relief group, Hope Force International, to collect and administer the funds.
Browne said they waited until now to mount their relief effort so they can do the most good. After the tsunami, the country's transportation routes and its hospitals were too devastated to benefit from orthopedic services. Medical facilities are back in operation and longer-term medical care can be addressed.
"We have had unusual careers," Browne said. "We really haven't tried to make a lot of money and store it away. Our expression of our faith is in this work."
Reporter John Stromnes can be reached at 1-800-366-7186 or jstromnes@missoulian.com
You can help
Hope Force International is a Christian nonprofit organization dedicated to equipping and mobilizing volunteers to help in areas of the world in crisis. The address is Hope Force International, 9454 Highwood Hill Road, Brentwood, TN 37027. The phone number is (615) 371-1271, and e-mail is info@hopeforce.org.
Tim Browne asks that any donations be designated to Orthopedics Relief, so they'll be earmarked for this mission. Contributions are tax-deductible. For more information about the medical mission and fund-raising project, call the Brownes at 883-4044 in Polson.
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