Staff Report
PESHAWAR: First modern Clubfoot Clinic has been established in Gilgit-Baltistan Under the auspices of the Paraplegic Center Peshawar (PCP) wherein children born with congenital clubfoot deformity will now receive completely free and internationally standardized treatment at the local level. This life-changing facility will enable these children to not only walk again but even run like other healthy children. The clinic has been set up at Shaheed Saifur Rehman Government Teaching Hospital, Gilgit, and prior to its formal inauguration, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed in a simple ceremony by Dr. Aamir Zaib, Provincial Program Coordinator of PCP, and Dr. Muhammad Afzal, Medical Superintendent of the hospital, representing the Government of Gilgit-Baltistan.
This marks the first clinic of its kind in the Gilgit-Baltistan province and the ninth clubfoot clinic nationwide established by PCP. Previously, PCP had set up two clinics in Peshawar and one each in Swat, Abbottabad, Haripur, Swabi, Islamabad, and Azad Kashmir.
According to Dr. Aamir Zaib, the core objective of these clinics is to bring accessible treatment to poor and underserved communities, as families of children born with clubfoot cannot afford the expensive procedures or travel long distances. Recognizing this challenge, PCP entered a long-term collaboration with the international charitable organization MiracleFeet, aimed at ensuring quality, timely and completely free clubfoot treatment across Pakistan.
Dr. Muhammad Afzal, MS of the hospital, while expressing his gratitude to PCP, the Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and MiracleFeet, said that prior to this facility, families in Gilgit-Baltistan had to travel hundreds of kilometers to reach Peshawar for treatment. He termed the establishment of this clinic as a revolutionary step for the province.
As part of the program, a special training session on the “Ponseti Technique” was also conducted for doctors, orthopedic residents, and technicians. This technique is recognized as the gold standard for clubfoot treatment worldwide. Following the training, local medical professionals are now fully equipped to treat children in their own community with competence and quality care.
So far, more than 5,163 children have been successfully treated through the nine clubfoot clinics established by PCP with the support of MiracleFeet, and efforts are underway to expand this network to more regions. According to Dr. Aamir Zaib, the joint mission is crystal clear, as to reach all children with clubfoot in their hometown and provide them with modern, high-quality, and entirely free treatment.
