Foreign diplomats’ wives to fund children’s cleft lip surgeries

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad Foreign Wives Association (IFWA) has decided to fund surgeries of children suffering from cleft lip and cleft palate, to be operated by British plastic surgeons here.

The association, comprising wives of foreign diplomats, delivered the financial help to the Pakistan Cleft Lip and Cleft Palate Association (PCLAPA), said a press release here on Tuesday. The donation was received by Dr Ijaz Bashir, Secretary General PCLAPA.

President IFWA Madam In-sun Choi, wife of the ambassador of the Republic of Korea, donated Rs 100,000 on behalf of the association at a special function.Natalia Stigelbeuer, wife of the Austrian ambassador, presented a detailed report on charity work of the IFWA.

A 10-member medical team, headed by Dr Nicholas Hart and comprising top British plastic surgeons, will arrive in Pakistan on February 25 to perform cleft lip and cleft palate surgeries. The surgeries, treatment, medicines, hospitalisation, stay and food will be provided absolutely free of cost to the patients by the PCLAPA.

The surgeries will be performed at the 22nd Camp, which would start at PCLAPA’s dedicated Bashir Hospital in Gujrat, starting on February 25, and will continue till March 06.The PCLAPA also has invited volunteers of all age groups, especially students from all the cities, to assist in its charitable work. Dr Ijaz Bashir said a total of 1,552 children had been operated with 100 per cent success rate.