A newborn baby with a cleft lip has reportedly been left behind by the mother at the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital, according to hospital staff who discovered the situation.
Health workers say the mother was admitted to the facility to deliver, but could not be located shortly after giving birth.
When attempts to reach her through the contact information she provided were unsuccessful, staff raised concerns that the infant may have been abandoned.
Hospital officials have since taken steps to ensure the baby receives proper medical care.
According to staff, the newborn is in stable condition and is being closely monitored while arrangements are made for long-term support.
Cleft lip is a condition that can be corrected through surgery, and medical professionals emphasise that children born with it can go on to lead healthy, fulfilling lives with the right care.
The hospital’s social welfare unit has been informed and is working alongside authorities to determine the next steps.
However, an organisation that provides free cleft lip and cleft palate surgeries, Operation Smile Ghana, has stepped in to offer support for the child.
Country director for Operation Smile Ghana, Peter Kwaku Titiat, said “We have accepted to put the child on our nutritional support until the child attains the right age. If all goes well by the grace of God, the child will be operated on in the first or second quarter of next year to ensure he survives.
“Ours is to ensure the interest of the child, that he is given adequate support and that he goes through the reconstructive processes to make sure the mother sees this child and regrets.”
Health experts have warned that Ghana risks having more children being born with cleft lip and palate as heavy metals used in illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey have polluted many drinking water sources.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Dr Opoku Ware Ampomah, who sounded the warning, explained that substances from galamsey activities had contaminated many water bodies, pointing out that such substances could cause birth defects.
Dr Ampomah called for the necessary steps to ensure that water bodies and food sources in the country stayed free from such contamination.
