Take a Step and change a child’s life this World Clubfoot Day

A NON-PROFIT organisation, Steps Charity NPC, focused on the treatment of clubfoot, has called for public and private sectors to increase the reach of clubfoot treatment programmes across more areas and to more children.

This call was made ahead of World Clubfoot Day held annually on June 3.

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Steps Charity NPC was started by Karen Moss in response to the huge need for clubfoot treatment support in Southern Africa.

According to Moss, early detection, treatment and care is critical in order to reduce long-term disability as a result of clubfoot.

“Since clubfoot is a treatable condition, with the help of NPOs, such as Steps, we can all play our part in helping children avoid a life of disability.

“We need to be able to extend our services and treatment to reach those who are unable to access it. And we need to look at practical ways of doing so with the utilisation of relevant and available resources,” she said.

To achieve this, Moss said this requires a two-pronged approach.

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“We need to extend the accessibility of clubfoot treatment programmes offering the Ponseti method (the non-invasive correction of clubfoot) particularly in under-resourced and under-serviced areas. And, to do so, we need to leverage all available resources, including affiliated health professionals, such as physiotherapists and occupational therapists. To achieve these goals, we need support from both the public and private sector,” she said.

Moss urged the public to consider the huge impact that can be made through donations to Steps this World Clubfoot Day.

“No donation is too small, and recurring donations can make a sustainable impact.”

“R2 500 supports one child through clubfoot treatment, R1 000 gives one child a clubfoot brace, and R250 pays one child’s transport costs to the clinic for treatment,” explained Moss. She added that a recurring donation of R500 per month supports the treatment of two children.

“This shows how significant a difference anyone can make to ensure that a child is able to live a mobile, productive life,”

For more information, go to https://steps.org.za

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