Seven month-old baby successfully undergoes cleft lip repair

A seven-month-old baby boy, Alfred Mwinemaaro, whose parents hail from Nkoranza in the Bono East Region has successfully undergone cleft lip repair at the Dormaa Presbyterian Hospital (DPH), Dormaa-Ahenkro in the Dormaa Central Municipality of the Bono Region.

Conducted free of charge, the surgery was performed by Dr. Salim Mancho, a visiting Plastic Surgeon, from the Miami Valley Hospital (MVH), Dayton, Ohio in the United States of America.

He was assisted by a Ghanaian Anaesthetist, Mr. Ellis Hakeem, who also works at the Miami Valley Hospital and five other staff of the surgery department of the DPH.

Speaking to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) at Dormaa-Ahenkro, Mr. Frederick Ahordzor, Programmes Coordinator of the DPH said the decision and arrangement for Dr. Mancho’s visit to Ghana and specifically to the DPH to perform free surgery and train health workers.

“Dr. Mancho chanced upon Alfred Mwinemaaro’s case and decided out of good heart not to let go but to do the procedure,” he said.

Mr. Ahordzor said plastic surgeries were not carried out at district hospitals, which included the DPH except at Teaching Hospital.

“We don’t have plastic surgeons here and such surgical cases are conducted at a cost and whether one is on the National Health Insurance or not, one will have to pay for anaesthesia”, he said.

Mr. Ahordzor explained that the MVH team’s priority was to conduct a preliminary assessment at DPH to ascertain how best they could offer assistance in the short, medium to long term.

Besides the surgery cases, the team gave a presentation to the Clinical Team on the management of soft tissue injuries and anaesthesia, and also interacted with the DPH’s anaesthetists to discuss how to perform “complex procedures in anaesthesia”.

“The Hospital has started booking cases and when they are enough, we will book an appointment with them in October this year for the surgeries to be performed”, the Programmes Coordinator hinted.

Mr. Ahordzor cited cases earmarked to be treated include birth deformities, trauma cases requiring reconstruction, cleft lip and palate among others.

Mr. Thomas Kwame Bienu and Madam Afia Bonyile, the parents of Mwinemaaro expressed profound appreciation to the Surgeon and the Hospital Management for the “gracious act of God” shown to them.

 

Source: GNA