Six-month-old Monserrath from Bolivia is the youngest of four girls in her family, but the first to be born with clubfoot.

Her parents were not able to find clubfoot treatment near their home in the Tarija region of southern Bolivia. There were no specialists knowledgeable about clubfoot in their region. The only option they found was a hospital offering expensive surgery, which the family knew they could not afford.

Fortunately, a cousin had seen information on Facebook about a clubfoot clinic opening at the children’s hospital in Sucre. It was a long trip for Monserrath and her family, but it seemed like their best option for treatment.

The family made the twelve-hour bus journey to the clinic at Sucre, where little Monserrath was enrolled in treatment. Although Monserrath’s parents were worried at first, the staff at the hospital told them what to expect during each step of the treatment process and even taught them the proper massage techniques to help the baby’s feet after the tenotomy.

Now Monserrath has completed active treatment and is in the bracing phase. Her mother is no longer worried and is so grateful to the staff who helped treat her daughter’s clubfoot. She can’t wait to see Monserrath learn to walk one day and hopes for her daughter to experience a typical childhood for children in their community: one filled with playing, running and jumping with friends.

MiracleFeet partners with Bolivian NGO Ayninakuna to support clubfoot treatment in Bolivia.

Inspired by Monserrath’s journey? Read more patient stories from around the world.