Selected nurses and mothers at a screening event at the SDA Hospital in the Kwadaso
Nana Afua Adutwumwaa Adjetey, the Programmes Manager of the Christian Health Association of Ghana (CHAG), has appealed to the media to intensify public awareness of clubfoot and its treatment in the country.
Clubfoot is a birth defect in which a baby’s foot is twisted inward and downward, causing the toes to point toward the opposite leg.
On average, about 180,000 children are born with clubfoot annually worldwide, and if not treated, it can lead to disability.
According to Nana Adutwumwaa Adjetey, CHAG has provided free treatment to 8,632 affected children, in addition to financial and material support to 100 families since 2008.
She made these remarks at the closing of a two-day free maternal and child screening for the disease, alongside an identification, detection, and referral training for selected nurses and mothers of treated babies at the Seventh-Day Adventist (SDA) Hospital in the Kwadaso Municipality.
The event was organized by CHAG and supported by Hope Walks and the Brazza Foundation International, both United States (US)-based Christian non-governmental organizations (NGOs), as well as the SDA Hospital.
The aim was to treat affected children as part of the association’s campaign activities on the disease.
She appealed to the government and other health stakeholders for more financial and material support to help achieve their ongoing awareness-creation target for this year.
Dr. Prosper Moh, an orthopedic surgeon at Saint John of God Hospital in Duayaw Nkwanta in the Ahafo Region and the Medical Director of CHAG, stated that free treatment and counseling were provided to over 70 persons during the two-day event.
He urged the public to avoid stigma and misconceptions about the disease, emphasizing that it is a common birth deformity.
“Clubfoot has no known cause. It is not caused by evil spirits, is not the parents’ fault, and is not a result of any parental action. Nothing can be done to prevent it, but treatment should begin soon after birth,” he noted.