While clubfoot deformity, remains a challenge in parts of Uganda, recent health statistics show progress in its treatment with success stories estimated at 96 percent for cases referred to the designated hospitals countrywide.
Clubfoot deformity is a birth defect in which the baby’s feet or foot turn inward. Ms Rebecca Nakiwala, the officer-in- charge of the clubfoot unit at Luweero General Hospital, says several parents and guardians who come to seek medical help for children suffering from clubfoot deformity attach the condition to societal myths including witchcraft practices.
‘We have registered several success treatment cases for children earlier affected with clubfoot deformity. Many parents still attach clubfoot deformity to societal myths, superstition and witchcraft practices. This is the biggest challenge that stands in the way as we fight to demystify and treat clubfoot deformity cases,’ she says.
Such misconceived societal beliefs, according to health experts force children born with clubfoot deformity to live life-long disabilities related complications.
Since 2019, 197 children with clubfoot deformity have been treated at Luweero General Hospital and now live healthy lives, Ms Nakiwala revealed on June 26, 2026.
Testimony
Mr Patrick Ssekyanzi, a resident of Katuugo Parish in Butuntumula Subcounty, Luweero District, is among the many parents who earlier faced challenges when he struggled with a child born with clubfoot deformity.
‘When the baby was born with both feet turned upward, I was advised to visit traditional healers to help appease the ancestral spirits that had allegedly caused the child deformity. The advice never yielded fruit. I was later advised to visit a health facility. At Luweero Hospital, my child who was then three-years old, was treated. The child’s feet got back to normal after a month’s treatment,’ he says.
Mr Rogers Ssemwanga, a resident of Sasira village in Wabinyonyi Subcounty, Nakasongola District, had to fight off society stigma because of fathering a baby who had both feet deformed.
While several people advised him to visit traditional healers, he approached a medical professional who advised that the condition could be treated.
‘When I finally got to Luweero Hospital, the medics advised that the health condition could be corrected. The child’s feet were back in their right position after a medical procedure that lasted only three weeks. The six-year old now walks normally,’ he says.
Ms Dorothy Nabukeera, a project coordinator for Advocacy and Partnerships under the Ministry of Health’s National Clubfoot Programme, says the misconceptions, myths and the stigma that sections of communities hold against children with clubfoot disease remain a big challenge.
‘We need sustained sensitisation against the societal myths in regard to clubfoot deformation. In Buganda region (central) children with clubfoot deformity are often associated with the ancestral spirits and are often abandoned. This leads to life-long deformity if not corrected at health facilities at an early age,’ she says.
The State Minister for Health in- charge of General Duties, Ms Hanifa Bangirana Kawooya, says equipping the regional hospitals backed by a dedicated staff that are willing to treat and sensitise the public against the society’s long held myths can boost the campaign against clubfoot deformity.
‘We need to educate expectant mothers about clubfoot deformities. The same sensitisation must be extended to the communities through the different awareness campaigns. We need to dismiss the wild beliefs in ancestral spirits as cause of clubfoot deformity because we already have success cases. When we bring on board the medical teams, community leaders and the general public, clubfoot deformity will be demystified,’ she said on June 26 as the country marked World Clubfoot Day at Luweero General Hospital.
Prevention
Dr Michael Mutegeki, a principal medical officer at the Ministry of Health, says the ministry is currently focusing on prevention and early identification of cases and the fortification of foods to prevent congenital abnormalities (birth) defects including spina bifida, primary limb abnormalities, among other cases.
‘When clubfoot is identified early, it can be managed at the different regional hospitals. Government is targeting recruitment of specialists at regional facilities to provide specialised care in the financial year 2026/2027,’ he said on June 26 as the country celebrated World Clubfoot Day.