PROFOMA is set up by German Leprosy Relief Association for manufacturing Natural Rubber footwear and post operational support materials for the Leprosy patients, under their rehabilitation programme.

MCR Sheets are also used for the construction of footwear & post operational support for Diabetic and Orthopaedic patients.

HISTORY

Protective footwear is an important component in foot-care. Provision of footwear should be considered as a 'mandatory measure' and not as an extra, optional rehabilitation measure. According to a Guideline, titled 'Prevention of Disability' for leprosy control programmes by the Medical Commission of International Federation of Anti-leprosy Association (ILEP), London,

" Protective footwear should be worn by all patients with sole sensory loss, whether or not they have sole wounds, throughout their lifetime.

MCR Cushioned insole will distribute walking pressure more widely over the sole and thus minimise the risk of wounds at pressure sites ".

AVAILABILITY OF MICRO CELLULAR RUBBER SHEETS FOR THE FOOT-WEAR AND POST OPERATIONAL SUPPORT FOR LEPROSY TREATMENT WERE IN SHORT SUPPLY.

Late Mr. Hermann Kober, Executive Director of German Leprosy Relief Association, Wurzburg, Federal Republic of Germany, vide his letter dated 18th June, 1990 wrote to the Director of their Indian Secretariat to find out the possibilities of establishing a Micro Cellular Rubber (MCR) production unit in India for catering to the requirements of leprosy patients, as recommended by the Leprosy Division, Director General of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, in their various Guidelines for NLEP.

GLRA Rehabilitation Fund

GLRA Rehabilitation Fund in its XI AGB meeting held on 26th August,1991 discussed at length the issue of providing protective footwear materials after taking into account the suggestion of International and National Agencies, the short supply of footwear materials at present, the future demand of footwear materials for prevention of disability and the views of the funding agencies at Germany unanimously decided to establish a MCR production unit at Palakkad. The land for the factory was allotted by the Government of Kerala and the technical support from the Technical Consultancy Service of Rubber Board, Kottayam (a Central Govt. Org.). The financial support from Economic Ministry of FRG and GLRA, Wurzburg, FRG.

Necessity of Rehabilitation

German Leprosy Relief Association had launched a rehabilitation scheme at Madras in the year 1974 to help the victims of leprosy, to overcome the handicaps caused by the disease and to fight against the non-chalant attitude of the contemporary society with the following objectives:

To cater the needs of the leprosy patients who are mentally disturbed and physically handicapped.

To speed up the process of the social assimilation of the leprosy patients and thereby wipe out the social stigma attached to the disease.                      
To rehabilitate the handicapped patients in their natural home environment through services such as starting fresh occupations as well as helping to reactivate traditional ones placing for academic courses and job settlement services, etc., whichever suit to their needs, capacities and aptitudes. The encouraging results obtained at Madras, promoted GLRA to extend this rehabilitation programme to other projects all over India.