Speaking during the press conference held at CCBRT yesterday, CCBRT’s Chief Executive Officer, Erwin Telemans, expressed his gratitude to Tigo Tanzania and other partners for their generous support.
“With Tigo’s support, CCBRT has been able to tackle one of the most challenging aspects of clubfoot treatment – ensuring continued follow up. Through Tigo’s innovation and support, CCBRT’s SMS reminder platform is able to send mobile reminders to clients in order to promote follow up so that patients are fully treated, with little or no risk of reversal. Tigo and other partners commitments enable CCBRT to treat hundreds of children each year for this treatable disability, so we’re very happy to have their continued support.” In 2016, CCBRT saw 448 new clubfoot patients, and conducted numerous follow ups for over 800 patients.
CCBRT is committed to providing equitable access to affordable, quality medical care, as well as preventing disability and promoting inclusion in Tanzania. One main outcome of this press conference will be to raise awareness about importance of early identification, seeking treatment and adhering to the full clubfoot treatment.
Clubfoot is a congenital deformity that can affect either one foot or both feet. The affected foot appears to have been rotated inwards and downwards at the ankle. Without treatment, people with clubfoot often appear to walk on their ankles or on the sides of their feet. However, with early identification and treatment at a young age, many children born with clubfoot are able to walk and participate fully in social and economic activities in their communities.
On her part Tigo Tanzania Head of Regulatory and Government Affairs Sylvia Balwire says that Tigo Tanzania is committed to giving back to the community in which it operates via corporate social responsibility initiatives. “We saw the urge to support this good cause since CCBRT serves the poorest of the poor in the community and tries to remove as many barriers as possible in order to allow people to seek treatment. Society will forever be indebted to CCBRT for taking the initiative to help people with disabilities and giving them an opportunity to be treated at subsidized costs. It takes one to have an extraordinary heart to be able to give the service CCBRT is giving to the community.”
More than 1,509 children have benefitted from life-changing surgeries at CCBRT over the past six years. This is an achievement that makes all of us at Tigo feel very proud. Through treating people living with disabilities, Tigo and CCBRT are making a lasting impact on the wellbeing of individuals, families and communities in Tanzania.
“To mark this year’s world clubfoot and as part of our commitment to promote community wellbeing, we are awarding 110m/- to CCBRT to support clubfoot treatments at its Disability hospital. This support of clubfoot treatments demonstrates Tigo’s continuing commitment to support healthcare service provision at CCBRT and in the country.” Added Balwire.