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Operation Cleft Australia

By Julie Stein

In November 2004 a group of Australian Rotarians visited Bangladesh. They were overwhelmed by the crowds and noise of this remarkable country whose population is in excess of 153.5 million in an area of just 144,000 sq km. Compare that to Australia where the population is just over 20.5 million in an area of 7,686,850 sq km

While visiting villages and local hospitals, the team noticed many people of varying ages with facial clefts and never having seen an untreated cleft before, were curious as to why there were so many. At Lamb Hospital they noticed a young boy, about 12 years old, with a bilateral cleft lip and one of the Rotarians took the opportunity to ask the doctor, “Why does he look like that at his age?”

The doctor responded with some sadness, “We can fix this condition quickly and economically but these people are very very poor. In most cases, the father is a farmer or a rickshaw driver who earns under $A250 a year. They just cannot afford to pay for the surgeons to repair these clefts and so they go through life like this. It not only looks terrible but causes major social and health problems.”

The doctor went on to say that there are an estimated 170,000 untreated clefts in Bangladesh and that another 3,000 – 4,000 babies are born with a cleft each year. As yet there is no conclusive evidence of the cause but there are a number of theories: may be due to traces of arsenic in the bore water and/or lack of folic acid in the diet. 

In Australia this type of deformity would be repaired at birth no matter how poor the family, so the image of this young man and the incredible prevalence of the problem made a profound impact on the visiting Rotarians. They were determined to initiate some way in which they could help.

Operation Cleft is Born

Since its inception in August 2005, Operation Cleft has grown significantly and has now funded in excess of 3,000 cleft operations; an achievement that all Rotarians and supporters are very proud of.  Special rates were negotiated with surgeons in three major hospitals across Bangladesh and the average cost of surgery, including surgical team, hospital, pre and post op care and medication is around $A200.00. Operation Cleft contracts these skilled in-country surgeons at the negotiated rate and each surgeon undertakes every 20th operation at no charge. The program links wherever possible, to existing systems and infrastructure so that costs are minimised and self sufficiency encouraged.

Project Management

Operation Cleft is administered on an honorary basis by business-minded Rotarians, who ensure that donated funds are used to maximum effect. The project is managed by the Operation Cleft Australia Foundation Trust, a fund controlled by the Rotary Club of Box Hill Central. It is widely supported by more than 300 Rotary Clubs across 20 districts in Australia as well as 3 internationally. With the assistance of a team of volunteers from Rotary and the community and the generosity of a private foundation, administration and fundraising costs are budgeted at just 8% of projected revenue for 2008-09.

Surgical Team

The Operation Cleft Surgical Team Leader is Professor Shafquat Khundkar, Professor of

Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery, Dhaka Medical College Hospital. Professor Khundkar did his plastics training in Melbourne, Australia and is now recognised as one of the top plastic surgeons in Bangladesh. Shafquat has fond memories of Australia and in particular of the Rotary Club of Eaglehawk (in central Victoria) whose support helped him to buy his first instruments some 23 years ago.

Speech Therapy

To further enhance the program and ensure best possible outcomes for our patients, Operation Cleft is in the process of developing a Speech Therapy service in conjunction with the CPT (Centre for the Rehabilitation of the Paralysed). It is the first of its kind in Bangladesh and this newly formed team will train the families to enable them to provide ongoing speech therapy to the patients when they return to their villages after surgery.  Post operative speech therapy is now an integral part of our holistic approach to the future development of the project and once established will continue to grow as a self-sufficient service across Bangladesh.

What is a Cleft?

Cleft Palate:             A hole in the roof of the mouth connects the mouth directly to the nasal cavity Assocated problems - Unable to speak properly; difficulty eating; may start going deaf at around 12 from infections in the middle ear canal.

Unilateral cleft:     One split of the lip.

Bilateral cleft:        Two splits of the lip.

40% of the children that Operation Cleft works with have both a cleft lip and palate.

Who do we help?

Morsheda

Imagine you have a daughter named Morsheda who is nine years old. You love her very much and you worry about her as she was born with a deformity of the mouth; a bi-lateral cleft. You live in a remote village and your family is very poor.  Having the money for an operation to fix Morsheda is something you can only dream of.  It breaks your heart as you know that she is isolated and teased by the other children and there is nothing you can do to help her.

One day in the village you hear an announcement from a van driving slowly down the street. The van driver gives you a flier that says “free cleft surgery at Lamb Hospital”.  You can’t believe it and rush home to tell Morsheda. Your family makes the long journey to the hospital and after many hours you arrive, tired and apprehensive. Outside the hospital you see a crowd of people waiting; many have clefts just like Morsheda.

The Doctor examines Morsheda and says with a smile, “Yes, we will fix that for you tomorrow”.

When Morsheda comes out of surgery the next day, you are so shocked. You can’t believe that it is the same person. Your beautiful daughter is now truly beautiful and when you return to your village everyone is talking about your lovely daughter and how pretty she is.

One month after the operation you return to Lamb hospital for a check up and to say thank you to the team of surgeons who transformed your daughter’s face.  Now she has a second chance at life; she has new friends at school and her prospects for a happy, healthy and fruitful life are greatly improved. 

Why are we passionate about Operation Cleft?

24 hours after surgery most of our patients pedal off into the night in a rickshaw and we never see them again. These people are some of the poorest in the world. They know little of Australia and even less of Rotary. But whether they know who or where we are is not important.  What really matters is that their child has been given a great opportunity that they would never have dared to dream possible. This is why the Rotary Club of Box Hill Central and supporters throughout Australia believe in it.

For just $A200.00, we give people like Morsheda the “gift of a smile for life”

If you would like any further information please contact Julie on +61 3 9889 8881 or email info@operationcleft.org.au