began implementing the Ponseti Method of clubfoot treatment through its pediatric hospital in Malawi in 2002. Other CURE hospitals began to adopt the method and in 2006 CURE Clubfoot Worldwide was formally established. This program then began to expand beyond CURE hospitals and partnered with other national hospitals and established clinics in countries that CURE International did not have a presence in, like Rwanda, Mozambique and India. In 2009, CURE Clubfoot began working in India, in conjunction with the CURE International India Trust and government healthcare programs. Over the next 8 years the program in India expanded until 2017, when clubfoot clinics were successfully established in all 29 states in India. The clubfoot program now continues to be run by the Clubfoot India Initiative Trust. On World Clubfoot Day, June 3, 2017, CURE Clubfoot announced a strategy to end clubfoot as a global disability, in partnership with the Global Clubfoot Initiative. The goal was set for at least 70% of children born with clubfoot in lower and middle countries to have access to treatment by 2030. Currently, less than 15% of children in these countries access treatment that would prevent a lifetime of disability. CURE Clubfoot grew to be the largest provider of clubfoot treatment worldwide, active in 17 low- and middle-income countries, and passing 100,000 total children enrolled in treatment since inception, with more than 16,000 children expected to enroll in 2017 alone. The CURE Clubfoot program became so large that in 2018 it began to separate from CURE International, and formally became an independent organization renamed as Hope Walks in 2019.
Method
Hope Walks uses a method to treat infants born with clubfoot, known as the Ponseti Method. This non-surgical method corrects the clubfoot with a series of casts over the course of 4 to 6 weeks, slowly manipulating the foot into a correct position. Typically this method also includes a tenotomy. After the casting phase is completed, the child will wear a foot abduction brace at night while sleeping for the next 5 years in order to prevent relapse. In addition to the physical treatment of clubfoot, Hope Walks also uses counselors to provide education about the condition in order to eliminate the emotional shame that parents typically feel because of cultural stigma. These counselors also help coordinate the care of the child throughout the 5-year process.
