Kripa, Nepal
Kripa Parajuli, from Eastern Nepal, was born with unilateral cleft lip and palate. Kripa’s father, age 27, labours in fields in the area to support a family of 7 members, including three children and an ailing father. The family’s plot of land can only produce enough food for the family to eat for less than half a year. When he is not farming, Kripa’s father works as a porter to carry goods from the bus stop to the village, which is almost one day’s walk.
Kripa was brought to the National Center for Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at the age of four months. After hearing from a friend that babies with clefts can receive free cleft repair and rehabilitation, Kripa’s mother walked for one day to the nearest bus station and traveled over 10 hours for an appointment with the team.
Kripa received a successful surgical treatment in 2004. Upon returning to the village a week after the surgery, family and friends were surprised at Kripa’s transformation. Nearly 10 months after the surgery, her mother expresses happiness that her daughter looks like other children, and she reports that Kripa’s eating habits have improved since the surgery.
