Lara Adejoro
The largest cleft-focused organisation, Smile Train, said it has provided free life-changing cleft surgeries to more than 18,600 beneficiaries in the last financial year 2023.
A cleft palate is an opening or split in the roof of the mouth that occurs when the tissue does not fuse during development in the womb.
A cleft palate often includes a split in the upper lip but can occur without affecting the lip.
The causes of clefts are still unknown, but they have been linked to environmental factors such as genetics, certain medications and smoking.
Globally, one in 700 babies is born with clefts, a common birth difference which, without treatment, can make it difficult for babies, children, and adults to breathe, eat, speak, and ultimately thrive.
Children who grow up with untreated clefts are often stigmatised and bullied, unable to socialise or go to school.
A statement made available to our correspondent on Thursday noted that the organisation provided 16,250 cleft surgeries in the 2022 financial year.
It also offered free cleft surgeries and comprehensive cleft care, which includes nutrition, speech therapy, orthodontics, and psychosocial support to enable patients to thrive.
In 2022, more than 1200 patients benefited from comprehensive cleft care interventions.
Smile Train’s Vice-President and Regional Director for Africa, Nkeiruka Obi, attributed the transformative impact to strategic collaborations and investments in comprehensive cleft care, research, and innovation.
She said, “The positive impact on individuals with clefts we have experienced was borne out of the concerted efforts of dedicated medical professionals and counsel of the Africa Medical Advisory Council. The intentional programmatic investments address the needs of the patients while empowering medical professionals to provide the highest standards of surgical and anaesthesia care within the local community.
“If we are to truly achieve Universal Health Coverage, our focus must be set on lifting the burden that people living in low-resource settings often face due to inequitable access to the much-needed timely safe surgery and anaesthesia care. We can achieve progress in this journey through collaborations with government, corporate partners, and non-governmental organisations and institutions.”
Since 2002, Smile Train has developed local partnerships with more than 700 partner hospitals and over 300 medical partners in 42 countries throughout Africa to provide free cleft treatment, she disclosed.
“To date, Smile Train’s local medical partners, have provided more than 170,000 life-changing cleft surgeries in the region. Among the strategic investments in education and training include partnerships with Scottish Charity KidsOR, the College of Surgeons of East, Central and Southern Africa, and the West African College of Surgeons to provide scholarships in various categories.
“Smile Train has enhanced the surgical workforce in Africa with 25 newly certified cleft specialist surgeons, 40 fellows in training, and 11 anaesthesia fellows with the College of Anesthesiologists of East Central and Southern Africa and Paediatric Anaesthesia Training in Africa.
“In addition, 400 in-house workshops have enhanced the expertise of more than 1,000 cleft care providers including in nursing, surgical instruments maintenance, orthodontists, and speech therapy. “Recently, Smile Train has broken ground in Ghana for Africa’s first Cleft Leadership Centre to build the capacity of cleft professionals to dispense global standards of care at the local level
“Smile Train, however, helps to dispel myths and misinformation surrounding the condition while partnering with local medical professionals,” the statement added.
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