Smile Train, a leading charity organisation supporting free corrective surgeries and comprehensive care for patients with cleft lip and palate, on Monday marked 100,000 cleft surgeries in Africa with a call on governments to support the cause.
Speaking at an event in honour of Smile Train, ambassadors, most of whom are beneficiaries of the programme, Smile Train’s President and CEO Susannah Schaefer committed to support additional outreach efforts to impact more cleft patients across the continent.
Locally, Smile Train has partnered with several county governments to train surgeons on the latest technology for cleft surgeries to improve the outcome for patients. Additionally, the organization is working on a programme for training community health workers on how to identify cleft patients from the grassroots level and sensitize communities on the need to seek early treatment for patients with such conditions.
“We are proud to reach such a huge milestone in Africa. We are able to do so with the support from our local medical partners, corporate partners, donors, patients and their families, ambassadors, and local community members who have all played an important role in ensuring that every child – no matter where they are born – has access to quality cleft care,” says Susannah Schaefer, President and CEO, Smile Train.
Smile Train has been actively supporting programs in Africa since 2002. In that time, the organization has developed local partnerships at 244 partner hospitals. In addition to cleft surgery, they actively support training of nurses, anesthetists, surgeons, speech therapists and orthodontists in cleft care, nutrition programs, speech therapy and orthodontics.
Smile Train empowers local medical professionals with training and education so that they can provide free cleft surgery and comprehensive cleft care to children in their own communities. Smile Train’s singular focus on cleft treatment has enabled the organization to support safe, quality, and consistent cleft care for children in need all over the world, including33 countries in Africa. Unlike other cleft charities, Smile Train builds the capacity of local health systems; fostering hope, confidence and lifestyle for both patients and communities-at-large. The strength of the organization’s local partnerships throughout Africa has made the 100,000thcleft surgery milestone possible.
“The impact of cleft is far more than just cosmetic – children with clefts that go untreated often have difficulty eating, breathing, speaking and ultimately thriving,” said Dr. Esther Njoroge, Vice President and Regional Director, Africa. “In fact many of these children face social stigma, making it challenging for them to go to school and find a job. That is why Smile Train’s local partnership model is so important – it is vital in giving children and their families access to quality care 365 days a year. Our 100,000th cleft surgery is a true celebration of our partnerships and an example of what can be achieved with sustained support and collaboration – working together we are truly changing the world one smile at a time.”
Smile Train says it is keen on sustainable empowerment programmes that give local medical partners the opportunity to build capacity. It is estimated that more than 200,000 children are born with a cleft every yearwith Kenya recording an annual figure of 1,300 cleft births annually.
Globally, 1 in 700 babies are born with a cleft lip and/or palate. Clefts are the leading birth defect in many developing countries. The cleft incidence rate of individuals of African descent is approximately 1 in 1,200 births. No one knows exactly what the cause of a cleft lip and palate is, but most experts agree that the causes are multifactorial and may include a genetic predisposition as well as environmental issues such as drug and alcohol use, smoking, maternal illness, infections and lack of folic acid.
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Smile Train Africa is continuing to lead the way in addressing cleft as a serious global health issue and will continue to invest in surgical and training innovation, and to build on our strategic partnerships with global health organizations to bring attention to the severity of cleft.
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