Nairobi, Kenya — As government restrictions slowly lift in Africa and communities begin to return to normalcy, global cleft charity Smile Train is working with their local partners in Africa to resume providing life-saving, free cleft surgeries. While the world is different due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Smile Train's top priority remains, as always, the safety and well-being of their beneficiaries, medical partners, and families.
Smile Train Africa Vice President and Regional Director Dr. Esther Njoroge-Muriithi noted that there have been many cleft patients awaiting surgeries since they were postponed in April. During this time, Smile Train continued to provide comprehensive cleft care including nutrition, speech therapy and psychological support to patients. Smile Train also invested more than $500,000 in the distribution of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), handwashing facilities and masks for partners and patients as well as equipment to empower their partners to continue cleft care while protecting themselves and their patients against COVID-19.
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