By Haja Adama Kamara.
Ministry of Health and Sanitation has partnered with the world’s largest cleft charity, Smile Train, to host the first nursing training workshop aimed at building the capacity of nurses in the country.
The three-day training on cleft treatment which started yesterday at the Atlantic Hotel in Freetown was officially opened by the Deputy Minister of Health and Sanitation (1), Dr. Anthony Sandi. A total of 40 nurses that are taking part in the training were drawn from different hospitals across Sierra Leone.
Smile Train has partnered with 245+hospitals and 255+ medical professionals in 40 countries across Africa to provide free comprehensive cleft treatment. To date, Smile Trains local medical partners have provided more than 120,000 life-changing cleft surgeries across Africa. The charity is certified by American Heart Association to offer Basic Life Support and Pediatric Advanced Life Support for partners.
Speaking during the start of the 3-day workshop, Deputy Minister of Health and Sanitation, Dr. Anthony Sandi welcomed the support from Smile Train to help train 50 nurses with critical life-saving skills which will improve the quality of healthcare in Sierra Leone. “Nurses play a vital role in saving lives and are often the first point of contact in patients’ care. “We therefore need to empower them with skills that help identify and respond quickly to emergencies. We commend Smile Train for sharing these skills which can also be taught among peers hence more sustainable in our hospitals,” noted Dr. Sandi.
On her part, Smile Train Program Director for West and Central Africa, Mrs. Nkeiruka Obi underscored the importance of transferring life-saving skills to nurses. “Smile Train employs a sustainable approach towards treating cleft lip and palate by adapting the “teach a man to fish” model of training local medical professionals…One such training is “Safe Nursing Care Saves Lives” program for nurses which has impacted over 500 nurses in Africa…By the end of the training, nurses will be confident, competent practitioners who are able to apply their knowledge and experience to deliver safe and effective nursing care…This does not only save children undergoing cleft surgery but also every patient they care for,” noted Mrs. Obi.
A cleft is a common birth defect that occurs when certain body parts and structures do not fuse together during fetal development. They can involve the lip and/or the roof of the mouth. Causes of a cleft remain unknown but risk factors include environmental factors, lack of proper nutrition, as well as genetics. Many children with clefts around the world live in isolation, making it difficult to make friends and go to school, but more importantly, have difficulty eating, breathing, and speaking.
