Mon 30th January 2012

100% PATIENT NUMBERS RISE IN GOLI!

In the last six months of 2011, there were 341 in patients at Goli hospital whereas, for the same six months immediately after the wards were opened, there were 172 inpatients. This is a very encouraging increase of almost 100%. A total of 563 inpatients received care in 2011. Malaria continues to be the major factor for admission.

Although a more modest increase was seen in outpatient numbers which rose to 6,088, a rise of just 6%, there were encouraging developments with the antenatal classes. An average of 27 women attended antenatal classes each month. Though this sounds low to western ears, this is an encouraging start in such a poor and uneducated community.

Intermittent Preventative Therapy (IPT) is a World Health Organisation (WHO) recommendation for all pregnant women in high risk malaria areas. This includes a pregnancy-safe anti-malaria drug with vitamin supplements of iron and folic. If a mother suffers from malaria during pregnancy, it is shown to cause low birth weight, maternal anaemia, miscarriage, still birth and neo-natal death. In South Sudan, only 40% of women receive any form of antenatal care; all women attending Goli’s antenatal classes receive the recommended doses of IPT and the 3 month course of vitamin supplements.

Mon 30th January 2012

COMPASSION SHOWN MORE THAN 14,000 TIMES IN EMBO!

In the past year, our Partner’s 8 full time and 6 part time Home Caregivers have made 14,675 visits to those suffering through HIV/Aids and their families. With an average of 294 patients each month, the Caregivers’ team has battled through extreme poverty, atrocious living conditions and adverse weather to bring compassionate care and hope to a community where HIV is an everyday part of life.

Throughout 2011, clients have received one visit a week on average. The Caregivers have ensured that 171 people have been tested and subsequently placed on anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs). At the same time, the Caregivers have had to face the fact that they lose clients who have left it too late to be tested, sometimes because of fear or stigma but sometimes because of an inability to afford the transport costs involved in visiting the nearest clinic at Bothas Hill. 125 people with whom our Caregivers were working have died during 2011.

The majority are thriving however. Increasingly, people in the community who witness the loving work and understand the educational message are coming forward for testing and given hope, not just through the drugs that lengthen life but through transforming friendships with their Caregivers.

One of our most experienced and much-loved Caregivers – Lillian Dlamini – has been quite ill with gallstones but has recovered from her operation in November and is back working with her clients. Lillian has the most clients and makes the most visits almost every month, though she had a quiet December by her standards!

Mon 30th January 2012

MAI BOARD APPROVES TWO NEW PARTNERSHIPS

During 2012, MAI hopes to develop two new Partnerships.

One is in northern Uganda with a focus on rural communities and providing palliative care in the home. Since much of this is focussed on people who are HIV positive, MAI feels that this will offer mutual learning with our KwaZulu Natal project which is similarly offering a church initiative to people with the same kind of challenge. Initiated by a Ugandan charity, FADO-T, the project draws upon expertise of the local Ngora Hospital and will commence with a full time qualified Nurse and 10 trained home care volunteers who will receive help with transport and a stipend.

The second Partnership will be with the Navajeevena Health Centre in Sri Lanka. This group seeks to provide excellent healthcare to the poorest segment of the society and does so, in part, through charging realistic fees to wealthier clients who prefer to use their excellent services. MAI is seeking to strengthen their ability to become self-sufficient by funding additional doctors who can extend their income earning capacity and, at the same time, enable outreach projects that need funding in the east and north of the country.

MAI hopes that both projects – Uganda and Sri Lanka - will come on stream during the year as initial fund raising generates income. Both require a 2012 income of around £15,000.

Mon 30th January 2012

GOLI DOCTOR SETBACK....FOR NOW

Our Southern Sudan partner, Bishop Elias Taban, had been promised that a Congolese Doctor with surgical experience would start work at Goli Hospital in January.  This exciting news encouraged many exisitng and new supporters to generously donate sufficient funds to secure a solar installation providing power for the Operating Theatre.

Sadly, this doctor has opted to take a better paid post in Juba.  As a consequence, Bishop Taban sent Judith, a Clinical Officer at Goli, to visit her former colleagues in the Democratic Republic of Congo.  She has found a doctor willing to come and discussions are in place about the timing of his appointment, once his papers have been studied.  A sad delay but hopefully soon to be over!

Mon 21st November 2011

BIG GIVE CHRISTMAS CHALLENGE

The Big Give organisation has selected a MAI project for inclusion in their Christmas Challenge!

Anyone making an online donation to our Embo project will see the value of their donation to the project DOUBLED by virtue of a matched funding guarantee.

If you give £50, it will be made up to £100.  Plus, if you Gift Aid your donation, it will contribute a further £12.50!

Donations can only be made by credit or debit card at http://new.thebiggive.org.uk/project/MAI4embo between Monday 5th to Friday 9th December.  IDEALLY, please apply as early as possible from 10 a.m. on the Monday morning.