Sunyani, Aug 9, GNA - The medical team from Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital in Kumasi that partnered their counterparts in Sunyani to operate on persons suffering from cleft palate free of charge will undertake a similar exercise before the end of the year. Dr. Daniel Asare, Medical Superintendent of the regional hospital in Sunyani where the exercise took place, told the Ghana News Agency in an interview that the team was overwhelmed by the response and cooperation from the public.

He said even though the team had the capacity to perform 60 operations, they could only handle 40 because their budget could not cover the rest, as they had not anticipated the high turnout. Dr Asare said most of the beneficiary patients were children with poor background whose parents could not afford the cost of transportation to the hospital.

He said their cost of transportation was borne by volunteers and some Community Based Organizations and majority of them had not registered with the National Health Insurance Scheme. Dr Asare said the maiden exercise was successful and the team did not experience any complications.

"We are satisfied with the outcome, the patients were content and at least I am happy that some of these children who had been rejected by society can now face the future with confidence", Dr. Asare said. He said although the hospital could carry out its day-to-day operations on cleft palate, the charitable component needed some financial assistance and appealed to individuals and corporate bodies to support "to put smiles on faces of hapless people in society". Dr Asare said each of the operations cost two million cedis (GHc200) and Cleft Palate Association paid 180,000 cedis (GHc18) each for those who could not afford cost of accommodation and the hospital handled the rest.