Mobilizing Children for Life

Every year 200,000 babies are born with clubfoot and, of the nearly 10 million people alive today who were born with it, as many as eight million have never received treatment. In late 2022, BBC reporters visited Senegal to hear directly from patients and families searching for clubfoot care. This article details the emotional stories they encountered as well as the passion they witnessed from MiracleFeet partners, providers, and ambassadors.

MiracleFeet is thrilled to announce a $5.8M grant award by GiveWell, one of the most selective and impact-driven philanthropic donors in the sector, to deliver quality clubfoot care in three countries.  The Case for Investing in Clubfoot Care Click here for the full report on the impact and importance of investing in clubfoot treatment. Full Report The grant allows us to expand our programs in the Philippines and launch two new programs in Chad and Côte d’Ivoire. It includes a target of enrolling at least 10,900 new children in high-quality clubfoot treatment and reaching 60% treatment coverage in each of the three countries. As part of the overall award, GiveWell approved a grant of $600,000 to fund monitoring and evaluation assessment to measure MiracleFeet’s impact on increasing access to clubfoot treatment over the grant period.  “GiveWell seeks out organizations that can deliver extraordinary impact per dollar invested. We are thrilled and honored to have met GiveWell’s rigorous selection criteria and very grateful for this pilot grant,” says MiracleFeet CEO, Daphne de Souza Lima Sorensen. “We are excited that GiveWell’s support will allow us to demonstrate that treating clubfoot deserves further investment and attention given the transformative and life-long impact it provides to children globally.”  The problem – and the solution Clubfoot is one of the most common birth defects and a major cause of physical disability globally affecting an estimated 200,000 babies born every year (about 1 in 700). Clubfoot has been consistently overlooked and underfunded by global health agendas for decades meaning that more than 2 million children under the age of 15 are currently living with the pain and stigma of untreated clubfoot.   In advanced health systems, clubfoot is treated routinely and at birth; however, 80% of all children born with clubfoot live in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) where there is little or no access to proper treatment. Children living with untreated clubfoot cannot walk properly and therefore face lifelong stigma and exclusion. They are less likely to go to school, unlikely to gain meaningful employment, and more likely to be malnourished, neglected, and even physically and sexually abused.  A problem we can solve While we cannot eradicate the birth defect, we can prevent the extreme disability it causes and radically change the trajectory of millions of lives. The highly-effective and low-cost treatment, called the Ponseti Method, provides lifelong mobility, independence, and opportunity for children affected by this common condition. The method involves gently correcting the position of the feet with a series of casts, a simple outpatient procedure to release the Achilles tendon, and then a brace worn at night to prevent relapse. 1 of 6 2 of 6 3 of 6 4 of 6 5 of 6 6 of 6 More from MiracleFeet A Special Touch in Clubfoot Care How important is bracing in clubfoot treatment? New study of factors and outcomes in Uganda  Clubfoot treatment paves a different life for the next generation MiracleFeet Awarded $5.8 Million from GiveWell to Expand Clubfoot Treatment

Every three minutes, a child is born with clubfoot. Fewer than 1 in 5 will receive care without our work to end this leading disability.