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Health check rescue
Posted by phildowding on February 22, 2012
A couple of weeks ago, we were able to carry out over 100 health checks on children in Namatala who aren’t currently attending any of our programmes. This was to help us obtain a direct comparison with our children to identify the benefits our programmes are providing.
It was also a great opportunity to give out free de-wormers to the community and some health advice to parents and guardians.
Grace (our health manager) noticed a child wandering around and crying – clearly with massive health problems. He had a massive stomach and stick-thin arms; his skin was peeling off, probably through some parasitic infestation. His legs were severely deformed and bent, likely due to malnutrition and lack of calcium and vitamins (although it could be a form of rickets). His legs and lower half were extremely swollen and he just sat in the dust by himself, crying pitifully – probably through hunger.
We located the guardian and asked for details of the child’s circumstances. She explained the parents had died and she was now looking after him, although clearly she wasn’t happy about it.
Fast forward a week… Philip and Moses went to visit the child yesterday, and it turns out he actually does have a mother, who had gone to her home village some weeks ago and left the child with a neighbour. When the mum returned and heard that a medical team had come and had shown concern about the child, she took him to the hospital herself.
Anyway, he is now admitted on the paediatric ward having some intensive feeding and his various problems being sorted out. It’s clearly a case of serious neglect by the mother – he didn’t get in that state overnight. But our team turning up seems to have shocked her into action. We’re going to keep an eye on the situation, but for now he’s in the right place.
