Nur, a wonderfully outgoing 5 year arrived for surgery in Nurture Hospital Center for Paralyzed in Chittagong, Bangladesh with her most favorite persons, her parents. Nur is one of four children from a remote village in the Chittagong District who has lived with a cleft lip all of her life.
Bapon Saha, from Touching Souls International, met during a pre-screening in her district and quickly nicknamed her “happy girl.” “I got the pleasure of meeting Nur shortly before she went into surgery and quickly learned why her nickname suited her – her positive personality was awesome!”
After surgery when Nur was in recovery, she was given a mirror where she saw her healed lip for the first time. Instantly tears of joy began to run down her cheeks, then down the cheeks of all around her. We brought her parents in and upon seeing their daughter for the first time, they were surprised than anyone thought could be humanly possible.
Nur’s story has touched us all. Those reasons being the patients and families whose lives are changed, which always in turn change ours. There are many kids like Nur who passes their childhood even many parts of adulthood with cleft-lip.
Cleft lip and cleft palate is a major problem in developing countries like Bangladesh. The people with cleft -lip and cleft palate are unable to eat or speak properly for which they have to face an isolated life filled with pain and shame for not being socially acceptable. Touching Souls International, a nonprofit organization offers free cleft lip and cleft palate surgeries for economically disadvantaged people of Bangladesh. Cleft lip operation gives the person a whole new start of life. Touching Souls International‘s cleft lip project is dedicated to optimize the quality of life of individuals affected by facial birth defects.
Cleft lip and cleft palate patients may have to face with following problems:
1. Eating problems: With a separation or opening in the palate, food and liquids can pass from the mouth back through the nose.
2. Ear infections/hearing loss: Children with cleft palate are at increased risk of ear infections since they are more prone to fluid build-up in the middle ear.
3. Speech problems: Children with cleft lip or cleft palate may also have trouble speaking. These children’s voices don’t carry well, the voice may take on a nasal sound, and the speech may be difficult to understand.
4.Dental Problems: Children with clefts are more prone to a larger than average number of cavities and often have missing, extra, malformed, or displaced teeth requiring dental and orthodontic treatments.
Touching Souls Internationall’s cleft-lip project works in co-operation with Cleft-lip Camp Group of Dhaka Medical College Hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Touching Souls International is an organization which is dedicated for it’s philanthropy for the disadvantaged people of third world countries. Since 2001, it has provided thirty six free cleft-lip camp in different districts of Bangladesh. In each cleft-lip camp fifteen to seventy needy cleft-lip patients got free cleft-lip surgeries. For the first time in their lives, they get back the freedom of smile. These patients get back a new life to live, not to be ashamed of their facial birth defect any more. They get a second chance to live.
Touching Souls International is a New York based non profit organization actively involved in charity work for the past two decades. Our mission is to provide support, services, and assistance in health, education and environment for the needy, economically disadvantaged people of the third world countries. Make a tax-deductible gift to support us. Donate to charity now using our online donation.
