Peshawar
A special event in connection with World Club Foot Day was held at Paraplegic Center Peshawar (PCP) in order to raise public awareness about the timely treatment of internally rotated feet of new born children.
Mrs. Dargana Kojic, Country Head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), who was the chief guest on the occasion, highly appreciated the outstanding contributions of PCP and especially eulogized the dynamic role of its CEO Dr Syed Muhammad Ilyas in this regard.
“We desperately need such health and rehabilitation institutions at the national and global level that are indeed dedicated to helping the suffering humanity and hence should be welcomed in every way”, she added.
Mrs Kojic acknowledged that PPC in the short span of four years of establishment of Club Foot Clinic in 2018, successfully treated the internally rotated feet of more than 1800 children and hence the center won the laurels and prayers of hundreds of thousands of helpless parents as well as the entire society, she maintained. She assured that no effort would be spared to encourage this unique rehab center of the subcontinent at the governmental as well as global level.
ICRC Physical Rehabilitation Program Manager Imad Aldibee and Head of Sub delegation ICRC Farrukh Islamov also praised the centre’s active role, stating that apart from Pakistan, the centre was mainly ensuring effective treatment and rehabilitation of spinal cord patients even for neighboring Country Afghanistan affected by the civil war.
Earlier PPC Chairman Zia-ur-Rehman, CEO Dr. Muhammad Ilyas Syed and Peads Orthopaedic Surgeon Dr. Salik Kashif elaborated the achievements of the centre while appealing to the parents that the sooner the newborns with clubfoot are brought to the clinic, the more effective it will be treated and rehabilitated for good.
On this occasion, the chief guest also met the rehabilitated clubfoot children and their parents and listened to their pleasant remarks. She also inspected the private rooms, orthopedic workshop and other sections of the centre. Shields were also exchanged at the end of the ceremony.
It is pertinent that World Club Foot Day is celebrated every year on the occasion of the birthday of Dr. Ignacio Ponseti, the inventor of effective non-surgical treatment for children born with club feet.
The invention has proved to be 100% successful globally.
Club foot disease affects more than 200,000 children worldwide, including in Pakistan, every year.
