Calvin is a young 23 year old man who has been featured in previous Patient case stories. He has had elephantiasis for the past 8 years and has been undergoing treatment at Hope Ward. These pictures are of Calvin over the course of his treatment and you will notice that in his latest picture Calvin has a great big smile, thanks to all supporters of Hope Ward.

Calvin is now back on Hope Ward continuing with treatment and will need further support for the purchase of a new set of pressure bandages (£200).

If you would like to help Calvin and other patients on Hope Ward then please click here.

Lawrence is a young 20 year old man from Namuwongo (the district in which International Hospital is located).  Lawrence has had more than his fair share of troubles; he was born into a family of 16 but has lost both his parents and 12 siblings. In April of this year (2008) Lawrence was travelling in the Luweero District (Central Uganda) and was seated in the front of a vehicle which had a head on collision with another vehicle.  He was fortunate to survive the accident but acquired a deep cut in the heel of his left foot. 

Lawrence was taken to a clinic where his wound was stitched; however it did not heal well and became septic.  Lawrence then went to Mulago hospital for further treatment.  Lawrence required several operations, firstly to remove the dead tissue from his septic wound (debridement) and then another operation to correct an ensuing deformity in his leg.  However, he did not have the money to afford all the treatment and so he stayed in Mulago hospital for three months. Lawrence says his family helped him for one month after which they despaired and have not been able to support him since then.

When Lawrence was discharged from Mulago hospital his wound had still not healed so he kept going back to the clinic he had first visited for about a month.  He says that the staff at that clinic ‘got fed up with a wound that could not heal’.

In early September some friends in Namuwongo advised him to seek assistance from Hope Ward.  He came to the Touch Namuwongo Clinic hardly expecting to be accepted, but he was and was admitted onto Hope Ward for two weeks.  He now visits the Touch Namuwongo Clinic daily to have his wound cleaned and dressed. The nurses on Hope Ward say that Lawrence’s wound is healing and should be perfectly fine in a short time with continued care and daily dressing.

Lawrence now wears a broad smile, has hope that he will fully recover and sends a message of thanks and appreciation to all those who help to sponsor care at Hope Ward.

We are putting on an night to remember at Kuvuka on Friday the 28th November.

The concept was born out of a frustration that when those of us no longer in our twenties want to go out and just have a good dance and a fun night, it always ends up marred by being bumped into by drunks, or for the females, fighting off irritating men. So we thought we’d do our own night, with some classic dance music from an excellent DJ, BYO drinks if you want to, and NO happy hour!

Kuvuka is a great venue for an exclusive event, but if this at all interests you, you need to book early to avoid disappointment, places are limited!

ALL of the takings will go to Suubi Trust (www.suubitruust.org.uk), our DJ is playing for free, we’ve got equipment free, and it’s being staffed by volunteers. Bring your own drinks means it’s a cheap night out after ticket cost, so if this isn’t an event that makes you feel good, I don’t know what will!

Feel Good Nights at Kuvuka Cafe

Another child who came for surgery following a fire accident is Yusuf.

Yusuf’s leg and back were severely burnt and he had to undergo skin grafting surgery to ensure that his lower leg would not stick to his thigh and cause him to be lame.

After some days on Hope Ward and following his surgery, young Yusuf was ‘running’ around the ward and sneaking into our offices (as if on a treasure hunt) with a wide bright smile.

It’s just great when we get updates about patients being helped on Hope Ward; this simply would not be possible without the funds raised here by our many supporters.

Jemimah sent us the following update…

Baby Enoch was abandoned on the street. Police officers found him and took him to the children’s charity in Kampala known as Noah’s Ark. The director of Noah’s Ark Ms. Pita Buitendijk came to Hope Ward seeking help since Baby Enoch’s condition was critical and nobody thought he would survive. Ms. Pita was willing to do anything within her means to fight for Baby Enoch’s life but she did not have sufficient funds to provide the medical care that Enoch needed. So Baby Enoch was admitted to Hope Ward and with the right treatment and care his condition quickly improved.

One more life was saved by the kindness of ’strangers’ and great appreciation goes out to the sponsors of Hope Ward.

The following is an update about Emmie, one of those being cared for using the funds raised by The Three Mums.

Emmie is a young Nurse who discovered that she had cancer in her brain last year (2007).  Emmie has been in and out of hospital ending up with a huge hospital bill and a large debt.  Unfortunately after initial surgery and cycles of chemotherapy Emmie’s cancer persisted in her lymph nodes and she need further surgery to remove all the lymph glands in her neck.

This was such a complicated procedure Emmie had to pay for a neck specialist to travel from Rwanda to perform the operation.  The surgery was going to cost so much money Emmie could not afford it and so she approached Hope Ward for assistance.  With help from Suubi Trust funds 90% of Emmie’s hospital bill was covered; IHK also gave Emmie a great deal of support by discounting her bill by 30%.  Emmie did not know that her hospital bill would be reduced by so much, when she discovered that she had been assisted in this way she was so happy her face lit up and she went home greatly encouraged thanks to all who are going the extra mile to help young people like Emmie in Uganda.

In September 180 people were able to get care at the Lira Clinic due to financial support from Suubi Trust. 86 of these patients were aged 18 and under. 38 were referred to the clinic by the staff at the Lira Primary School.

Most of the patients seen had malaria. It is becoming evident that a malaria prevention initiative would greatly benefit the people of Lira as it is affecting so many people yet it is a preventable disease.

You can read more about some of these patients here.

In the three months, July, August and September our supporters raised an absolutely amazing

£23,340.

On behalf of my fellow trustees I want to pass on our thanks to all and simply say that we are overwhelmed by such generosity.

We know that this will make a huge difference in the lives of many, many people.

Read more about fund raising on our website…

Kevin.

On Saturday 13th September Sine took part in the Half Ireman to raise funds for the charity Physiotherapy clinic at Hope Ward. After hearing about what was involved we’re very surprised that she doesn’t need physio as a result. This also seems to be a very interesting take on the word “Half”

Here’s what Sine has to say about it…

It was the Half Ireman Triathlon in Groomsport, Co Down. It involved a 2km swim, followed by a 93km cycle and a 21km (half-marathon)run.

It was a tough course, with the swim distance ending up extra-long and rougher than expected, the cycle stretching to 96km, and the run course taking us over marsh, beach, and rocks. I was very happy finishing in a time of 6 hours 50 mins, and 5th in my age category.

Well done Sine and thanks for supporting Suubi Trust.

Here’s some photos…

That's Sine in the pink cap...

Sine, on the right, at the finish

St. Peter’s Methodist Primary School has collected two more gifts to help support healthcare provided to the pupils at the Lira Primary School. In July they raised £188.05 at the end of term production and more recently £102.16 at their Harvest celebration. Earlier this year St. Peter’s raised £255.49.

These gifts come in the same week as we received the following update about the work in Lira…

There is a very high incidence of Malaria and Typhoid in this district. Both of these infectious diseases thrive in areas where people live in crowded conditions, and the incidence of both can be reduced by simple education and sleeping under mosquito nets.

These diseases have a major impact on children, not only in terms of mortality, but also adversely affecting their development by causing them to miss school.
There have been 20 Charity patients recently treated for these conditions at the Lira clinic from the primary school alone, where the boarders are especially vulnerable.

Several children and their teachers wanted to share their stories:

Bob Yapi, Teacher in Charge of the school said

“The clinic has reduced the drop out rate and absenteeism at the school and I would like to thank all the sponsors.”

Emmanuel Okello, age 7, Primary 1:

He used to end up being admitted to Hospital and put on a drip but since he has been receiving help at the Lira Charity Clinic he hasn’t had any admissions.  He now takes the correct medication and sleeps under a net.  Emmanuel is poor and unable to afford correct medication; subsidised drugs from the charity clinic means he can get good medication, avoid admission for an iv drip - which means no absence from school.

Sarah Akoko age 12, Primary 7:

Used to get Malaria and Typhoid regularly but since coming to the Lira charity clinic for treatment, 3 months ago , she has had been healthy.

Lira pupils helped by funds raised at St. Peter's Methodist Primary School

Rita Ayugi age 10, Primary 5:

Has been suffering from regular bouts of Malaria. Since attending the Lira clinic she has had no further episodes and is much more active and alert in class and now takes part in extra- curricular activities.

Anna Adul, her teacher says

“I, and the school at large, have appreciated the effort you, the sponsors, have made in the school and hope you can continue with that spirit of good health for the children.

One of the nurses went to the school to talk about Malaria and Typhoid and to sensitise and educate the children and teachers on how to avoid these common diseases. Since the start of the clinic there has been a reduction in the incidence of these diseases in the school.”

Rita and her teacher Anna