Family Friend Helps Rashid Find Clubfoot Treatment
When Rashid was born nearly two years ago with unilateral clubfoot, his mother and father felt worried and uncertain about their son’s future. Nobody else in their family had been born with the condition, and they didn’t know where to seek clubfoot treatment.
The family’s doctor directed them to a hospital near their home in the Mara region of Tanzania so that Rashid could begin treatment. At the age of two weeks, Rashid began casting. Unfortunately, the treatment offered by the hospital was not Ponseti treatment. While most children receive 5-8 casts, Rashid received 20!
Then his mother found out the hospital was going to charge them for the tenotomy procedure. Despite the financial hardship and burden of the surgery cost, Rashid’s family managed to raise the money. They arrived at the hospital for the tenotomy appointment, but the doctor did not show up.
Finding Ponseti Treatment
On that day, Rashid’s family decided that they would seek a different option for the child’s treatment. They wanted to know their son was in good hands with a reliable team who cared about his progress. Fortunately, a friend’s son had also been born with clubfoot and had been treated with the Ponseti method at a MiracleFeet-supported clinic. The friend recommended that Rashid and his parents go there to seek treatment. Once the family friend told Rashid’s mom that the treatment for Rashid would be free and the clinic was only a few kilometers from their home, they knew they had to go.
Rashid is now nearly two years old and has successfully completed active treatment. He will continue to wear his brace at night and during naps for several years, but during the day is an active toddler who loves cartoons and playing games on his mother’s phone.
