The Taiwan Foundation for Rare Disorders (TFRD) and the Bunun Education and Culture Foundation yesterday celebrated progress made in the promotion of a screening process used to detect metabolic disorders in newborns, as well as in the fighting of unemployment amongst the Bunun (
The festivities were held as a token of thanks to the 11 companies who had contributed financial support to both foundations and included musical performances by persons living with multiple sclerosis and brittle-bone disorder (or Osteogenesis imperfecta).
"What we are doing today is taking care of the next generation," said Serena Chen (陳莉茵), chairwoman of the TFRD's standing committee.
A spokeswoman for the Bunun Education and Culture Foundation expressed her gratitude for the donation and both foundations reported on the progress made possible by the donations.
The NT$360,000 given to the TFRD will enable the promotion of a new screening process known as tandem mass spectrometry, a procedure that can detect over twenty metabolic disorders with just a few drops of blood taken three to five days after an infant's birth. The foundation said that the previous screening method could detect only five disorders.
The foundation further estimated that roughly 50,000 infants have already undergone tandem mass spectrometry.
The foundation stressed the importance of identifying disorders early, not only to perform preventive treatment but also to help parents to make informed decisions about having more children.
The Bunun Education and Culture Foundation, recipient of NT$906,000, reported that 120 members of the Bunun tribe had already secured jobs within the Bunun Village, a recreational resort in Tai Dong. The foundation emphasized that the village is a source of income that fosters financial independence instead of reliance.
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