“Patrick likes to be alone most of the time,” says Patrick’s mother. “We hope once he is able to walk properly he will be more active and social.”
Patrick is a quiet and shy six-year-old boy from Tanzania. He likes coloring picture books and playing with cars. He is the first-born in a family of three children.
Patrick was born with bilateral clubfoot, a condition where the feet are twisted inwards. As a result, Patrick had trouble walking until unusually late in life; he was crawling for so long that he now has chronic sores on his knees. Patrick now walks on the outside parts of his feet instead of on the soles, which has seriously affected his gait. Walking—let alone running, or participating in other playtime activities that children his age do—is painful and slow for him.
Fortunately, there is a tried and true surgical solution for clubfoot. But Patrick’s parents cannot afford the procedure. The little money that Patrick’s parents earn as farmers is not enough to cover their daily expenses as well as the cost of corrective surgery which Patrick needs.
But we can change that. For $1,160, doctors at Arusha Lutcheran Medical Centre will perform the operation that Patrick needs, correcting the abnormal connective tissues in his feet. This funding will also cover the cast, foot braces, and four-month stay at a recuperation center that will ensure Patrick recovers safely.
When he’s healed from his procedure, Patrick will be able to walk normally, on the soles of his feet, for the first time in his life. This will mean a more physically comfortable life for him, and – as his mother hopes – a more social one.
