Irene Nabusoba writing in New Vision…
THE medical staff at the International Hospital Kampala (IHK) call him Little Bukenya. The 11-year-old boy is suffering from a strange skin disease according to the story in The New Vision June 6.
Many people called in to offer assistance. Prominent among them is Phillip Nduga, a fitness consultant based in Canada, who teamed up with two female Canadians and their local representatives, to get Bukenya from his home to IHK.
Under the auspices of SSUBI Foundation, Canada, they have also promised to take Bukenya back to school. He was in P.5 when the illness forced him out of school.
Bukenya was diagnosed with a rare skin disease, pemphygus foliaceus, where the immune system makes a mistake, views the cells in the skin as foreign and attacks them. The cells no longer stick together, which causes burn-like lesions or blisters.
“What you (The New Vision) wrote was correct; Bukenya suffers from Pemphigus Foliaceus,” says Dr Ian Clarke, IHK’s chief executive officer.
“We have experts who will try to manage his condition, but that may take a while.”
Clarke said Bukenya is undergoing extensive tests at IHK’s Hope Ward, the charity wing of the hospital, which cares for financially-disadvantaged or abandoned people with severe ailments which are costly to manage and take a long time.
“We shall also put him on intravenous fluids and a special diet. He is malnourished and skin care requires both the inner and outer attention.”
Clarke added that the hospital will care for him at no cost, courtesy of goodwill corporate companies and individuals who sponsor beds in the Hope Ward.
Dusman Okee, the Suubi Foundation’s local representative, says they will meet the boy’s miscellaneous expenses during his stay in hospital.
Okee, who coordinated Bukenya’s transportation to IHK, reveals that the foundation started in 2005 and currently pays school fees for several orphaned children in northern Uganda. It hardly covers health, save for exceptional cases like Bukenya’s.
“This boy falls in our line of charity, but he is the first case we are taking on from the central region,” said Okee.
Bukenya has been confined at home because his parents could not afford the medical bills. His 54-year-old father, Emmanuel Kasita, could only express his appreciation with tears and endless hugs.
Diseases of the skin affect thousands of children each year. These diseases cause discomfort, pain, disfigurement, disability, dependency or death. I hope the best for this child!