IN Conversation with our Former Patients

We are obliged to our donors to present the authentic story of our work and its impact on the patients and their caregivers’ lives. Hence, we have brought up the survey where we questioned the former patients and have gained insights into some vital statistics regarding the care and treatment extended by Mission Smile to children suffering from cleft lips and cleft palate.

Please read below to find out how your donations have impacted many children’s lives and brought back their beautiful smiles.

“Kindness is a gift that  keeps on giving.“

Our donors’ kindness helps us reach out to children born with cleft. The lockdown put a hold on our operations as our hospitals were repurposed to be used as COVID-19 wards. Mission Smile used this opportunity to reach out to our former patients who had received surgeries at our centers.  This helped us ensure that the investment made by our donors in changing the lives of cleft-afflicted children had the desired impact. Here are a few snippets from our conversations.

Most of our patients fall in the age group of 0-6 years.  This is the perfect time for surgery as it allows the children to develop standard speech patterns. However, a considerable number reached us between their 6th and 12th years. The age above can make the surgeries a bit complicated though we have also operated on patients from 12 to 18 years and above age group.

The surgeries at our centers are provided free of cost to patients. In certain circumstances, the patient had to pay for extra blood tests, which are not factored into our budget.

Along with  free surgery we also provide transportation, stay, food and discharge medicines.

An overwhelming 61.5%% of our patients are extremely satisfied with the surgery they have received at our centres. However, there are circumstances when the patient requires additional surgeries, which have resulted in not happy reviews. Such cases are a nominal 4.2 % among 100.

Therefore, we have asked our patients and their caregivers, if they require further surgeries. Often, we see that children suffering from cleft lip also have a cleft palate. These surgeries are not performed together, and the child will have to return for additional surgeries.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We reviewed whether the patients and their families were safe during the Covid-19 situation. Mostly we were ensured of safety, but around 3.9 % of the caregivers were in doubt.

We further asked our patients if they were aware of the Virus and how it spreads. A majority of our patients reported that they were familiar with it. For those who were unaware, we informed them about the disease along with Government and WHO guidelines.

This exercise helped us ascertain the impact these surgeries have caused on our patients’ lives, along with allowing us to reach out to those still in need. While several children have gained their confidence back and are now living everyday lives, there are even more who need your help. Join us to change lives and spread smiles.

Please look out on our next blogs where we bring in more insights.

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