We’ve Been Flattening the Clubfoot Curve Since 2010

Before MiracleFeet existed, no organization solely worked to end the long-overlooked problem of untreated clubfoot, one of the world’s most common and treatable birth defects. Today, we ensure treatment for more children born with the condition than any other.

Every week, through MiracleFeet’s support, at least 100 children begin care, receiving their first casts as newly enrolled patients at hundreds of clinics in dozens of countries. Their parents leave with hope, with assurance their child will walk, run, and go to school, all because a highly-effective treatment is available – and free. At least 1,200 more patients this week (and every) will receive follow-up care to ensure their long-term progress.

MiracleFeet is on the frontlines of advocating for critical health services for those most at risk of being left behind.

COVID-19 highlighted the stark inequities children with disabilities face while exacerbating their major barriers to essential health care. It has revealed serious gaps in how health systems work for vulnerable populations. Fortunately, COVID did not stop our work, and the clinics we support are well on their way to safely reaching the 12,000 patients whose treatment was delayed during shutdowns.

MiracleFeet’s network of care spans the globe: over 650 locally trained physiotherapists, casting technicians, orthopedic residents, nurses, social workers, and others provide or coordinate treatment in 29 countries. Our work continues because of them. Together, in 2020, we made major contributions to the growth, innovation, and quality of clubfoot treatment worldwide:

We expanded our network of clinics by 40%, launched programs in two new countries, and saw remarkable increases in treatment coverage prior to March. Our partners in several countries reached 30+ percent more new patients, compared to the same period in 2019.
Our focus on technology, data, and innovation is rapidly paying off. The all-in-one patient, clinic, and program management tool CAST made its full global debut in MiracleFeet-supported clinics in January 2020. The real-time data it provides helped us navigate the shocks of COVID and tailor partner support and treatment protocols based on local realities. And a just-launched digital curricula for the Ponseti Method, years in the making, will fill a critical training gap amid social distancing and travel restrictions.
Many MiracleFeet partners achieved treatment quality levels exceeding the global “gold standards” for the Ponseti Method, meaning a child in Somalia is receiving the same quality of care as one in the United States. The fact that this is happening in such different contexts speaks to the inherent scalability of the method—and the solvability of clubfoot worldwide.

Nothing we do would be possible without the generosity of our donors, the ingenuity of our partners and staff, and most of all without the daily dedication of health workers who are transforming lives one referral, phone call, and cast at a time.

Together, we are making an incredible difference in so many lives. Thank you for believing in our work.

Chesca Colloredo-Mansfeld

Board Member (USA)

Driven by the idea that a newly accepted low-cost, non-surgical treatment could have extraordinary impact on the lives of children born with clubfoot in low…

Contact

Chesca@miraclefeet.org

Chesca Colloredo-Mansfeld

Board Member (USA)

Driven by the idea that a newly accepted low-cost, non-surgical treatment could have extraordinary impact on the lives of children born with clubfoot in low and middle income countries, Chesca co-founded MiracleFeet in 2010. She successfully built on experience in investment banking, management consulting and technology start-ups to refashion herself as a social entrepreneur.

Originally from England, Chesca grew up in Africa and Asia, and has lived and worked in Pakistan, Ecuador, UK and US. She first became interested in clubfoot while working at The University of Iowa, where the Ponseti Method was pioneered. Drawn to the opportunity to have an impact on children’s lives in some of the countries where she had grown up, she joined a small group of parents and surgeons interested in creating an organization to address the long-overlooked issue of untreated clubfoot.

She studied economics and political science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as a Morehead-Cain scholar, and later earned an MBA from Stanford University.

Authority Magazine | Social Impact Heroes: How Chesca Colloredo-Mansfeld & MiracleFeet Are Helping Children Born With Clubfoot