Zenabi is the second oldest child of a poor family of 4 children. Zenabi had had severe Post-Polio deformities in both legs with stiffened knee joints and paralysed lower limbs since her very early childhood. She was confined to her hutment's small quarters, where a family of 6 live in one room upstairs. Due to her handicap she was not able to go to school. For every outdoor activity, Zenabi had to be carried down a narrow, steep metal staircase by her father. She saw very little sunlight and fell ill with Tuberculosis.
After an initial checkup her treatment had to be postponed for 7 months until her tuberculosis was cured. Then she had 2 operations to straighten out her backward stiffened legs. These 2 operations were extremely difficult, but successful. We spent a lot of individual time with Zenabi and her family to support them morally during these difficult stages. She also required special physiotherapy and lots of exercises, which needed to be directly supervised. We also supplied her with educational materials to enable her to learn to read and write with the help of her sister and our assistance.
By the end of the year, Zenabi had completed her treatment of 4 operations with great success and we were all thrilled to see her stand up for the first time in her life. We know the attention and investment for her was worth it all. Her overall health has improved tremendously though her muscles are still quite weak. However with a special caliper which was made for her, she can now walk and move around and will soon start working as an operator in a telephone booth.
Zenabi is excited to start a new life and is very thankful for all the help given. Thanks to the free correctional treatment project of Child & Family Welfare Foundation (CFWF) and Dr. Desai's skill, Zenabi faces a much brighter future and will soon be able to lead an independent life.
