A one-year-old baby from the City of Tshwane will now be able to smile with confidence.
His cleft lip and palate surgery was part of the surgical marathon performed at Steve Biko Academic Hospital in Tshwane on Tuesday.
Twenty-three public hospitals across Gauteng participated in the marathon event.
A cleft palate is a common birth condition where the roof of the mouth does not join properly during birth.
A cleft lip is a birth condition where the tissue that makes up the lip does not join completely before birth. This abnormality affects speaking and feeding.
The boy’s critical surgery makes it possible for him to restore normal function with minimal scarring.
The toddler will also grow up with the support of speech and language therapists accessible across Gauteng hospitals. This will help correct speaking difficulties.
In the marathon, a total of 358 surgical procedures were conducted on patients who were on waiting lists for elective surgeries.
These procedures included arthroplasty, hernia repair, maxillofacial, hysterectomy and cataract excision.
“The patients were chosen according to surgical backlog lists at every hospital, which incorporates waiting time and prioritisation according to clinical needs,” said the department.
“The impact of this project is greater than just reducing the surgical backlogs.
“The greater impact is on the patients who will now have functionality restored because they have had challenges with their eyesight due to cataracts or challenges with mobility due to severe knee and hip osteoarthritis.”
The department said the surgeries would afford patients the opportunity to concentrate on things they love. To see their loved ones properly and to experience a new reality.
MEC of health Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko said the introduction of the marathon is to enable the department to work towards decreasing the waiting list of elective surgeries.
Gauteng hospitals will also continue to employ “surgical blitz” on weekends as an ongoing strategy to reduce waiting times for patients.
“I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to the clinicians and their respective teams who continue to make positive changes in the lives of patients undergoing these surgeries.
“We are truly grateful to the many teams in our hospitals who continue to break boundaries and are committed to the course we started on Nelson Mandela Day this year with our intense surgical marathons.
“All our teams which include specialists, registrars, medical officers, scrub nurses and other support staff are all vital in making these operations a success,” said Nkomo-Ralehoko.
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