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Talent Hwari Herald Reporter
The screening for cleft lip and palate surgical operations set to benefit 60 patients started at Parirenyatwa Hospital on Sunday, where scores of patients turned up for surgeries which started yesterday and expected to last until Saturday.

An Indian organisation, The Love Without Reason, founded in 2007 by Mr Santhosh Mathews and his wife Susan, is sponsoring the operations.

Mrs Mathews said in an interview yesterday that they were inspired to visit Zimbabwe to conduct the surgeries following information that the country had a five-year back log on cleft lip and palate surgeries.

“We were touched when we heard that Zimbabwe has the five-year back log,” she said.

“The door opened for us to come to Africa and we started to visit Zimbabwe. We came with five doctors from India and another team from United States of America.”

Mrs Mathews said they were going to operate 10 patients per day.

“With the equipment we have, we arranged that we can do at least 10 surgeries everyday for those six days because the surgeons are only available for one week,” she said.

“We started the work in India and for the last five years we have completed over 300 surgeries. We do not charge the patients for surgeries, but we raise the money.”

Mrs Mathews said the surgeons and paediatricians would look at the screening results and agree on those with severe conditions for the surgeries.

She said they were working with some churches in Zimbabwe for the operations.

Overseer for Revival Ministries International, Mr Khulumani Mangena, said they partnered with other churches for financial support.

“We were moved by compassion and we partnered with other ministries for financial support,” he said.