COVID-19 Update

MiracleFeet-supported clinics have resumed treatment in most locations (after months of closures beginning in March 2020), and patient visits have steadily increased, returning to near-normal levels in recent months. We are optimistic that operations will return to full capacity over the next year.

Clinic activity across programs has returned to normal volume.

By August 2020. in most countries, clinics had carefully resumed operations with adjustments to treatment protocols to ensure patient and healthcare provider safety. As transportation and other systems reopened, the number of patients visiting clinics steadily increased, returning to near-normal levels through the end of 2020.

During this time—a potentially isolating and emotional experience for families awaiting treatment while clinics work to safely address the backlog of cases—MiracleFeet has worked closely with partners to ensure patients’ families are connected to care coordinators and receiving essential information about their children’s condition and the status of treatment options near them. We have set up hotlines for medical questions, instituted telehealth consultations, provided COVID-19 prevention materials, and distributed supplemental online training resources to providers.  

Our priority remains the health and safety of our patients and providers.

We are providing PPE and enforcing social distancing at health facilities to ensure providers can safely offer patients care. We worked with partners to devise reopening procedures, including prioritizing care based on stage of treatment and patient’s age, and planning for higher volumes as we work through the significant backlog of children born with clubfoot in the last several months. In parallel, we are also creating contingency plans in anticipation of longer delays or virus resurgences in some countries. MiracleFeet-supported clinics are subject to local government and hospital-level safety procedures in response to coronavirus, and their decisions to reopen must comply with those policies as well.

MiracleFeet is also accelerating our digital training and SMS tools, as well as use of tele-health for brace checks to reduce travel. While COVID has been a catalyst for increased use of technology, these innovations will enhance the efficiency of our programs well beyond the pandemic – just as our sophisticated data collection and M&E system, CAST, has proven to be critical as we manage the rapid changes brought on by this health crisis.

We know that COVID-19 will impact our work, and health service delivery everywhere for years to come. But we will not lose focus in our charge to end a disability that has been neglected worldwide for so long, until now. MiracleFeet’s strength and momentum lies in our extensive network of local partners—over 650 working at 320 rehabilitation and orthopedic clinics in 29 countries—who we empower and collaborate with to treat children born with clubfoot.

COVID-19 has highlighted stark inequities in health systems, especially for children with disabilities.

Already at risk of being excluded from humanitarian, medical, and educational services, now their guardians face even greater barriers: lost wages, weakened support systems, no public transportation in many places. Access to free treatment for this leading physical disability is more critical than ever for their livelihoods and futures.

To our supporters and partners, your generosity and loyalty sustains our work. Your belief in solving this problem makes it possible to reach some of the world’s most vulnerable children with the care they need to thrive.

 Thank you.

Chesca Colloredo-Mansfeld
Co-Founder & Executive Director