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| Circular -
December 2013 |
| Fiona: “I
wanted to die because of the pain, I couldn’t walk, couldn’t
take myself to the toilet, I had wounds which weren’t
healing.” Fiona tried to poison herself, but was taken to
hospital and from there to Acheru. “My condition had
isolated me from others, but now my life has been transformed. I
will always praise God for bringing me back to life. People at
home are waiting to see me. I have been hospitalised for three
years.” |
| Jemimah
suffered very severe injuries in an accident. Her mother says: “It
is now seven months since we have been at Acheru. I am seeing a
miracle in my daughter, the leg healed after plastic surgery and
the thigh bone that had been broken is now joined. I had never
imagined that places like Acheru exist. I praise God because
nobody expected my daughter to recover.” |
| Daisy.
Born with deformed legs. Her father, a fisherman, drowned before
she was born and her mother, who brought Daisy to Acheru, couldn’t
stay with her because of other family problems. Without a carer,
Daisy couldn’t stay at Acheru, but she was ‘adopted’
by the matron, Margaret, who says “I have seen a great
improvement in Daisy’s life because at first we thought she
wouldn’t walk. Now she follows me everywhere I go. God has
done miracles.” |
| Catherine,
age six, suffered from osteomyelitis. Her father says: “It
started as a blister on her leg which we thought would heal, but
it enlarged and she was in severe pain. People said she was
bewitched and sent us to different witchdoctors, but the wound
kept increasing in size. We went to five different hospitals for
treatment, but it didn’t help. She was weak, couldn’t
walk, and the bone was growing out of the flesh. Everybody lost
hope, we thought she was going to die.” |
| Her father
brought her to Acheru, she was referred to CoRSU on 12th Sept
2013 for surgery (sequestrectomy and external fixation) and
underwent nutritional rehabilitation, before returning to Acheru
on 23rd Sept where her recovery continues. “When I see a
smile on my daughter’s face I feel happy too. I hadn’t
known that Acheru, with such caring people, exists. I send my
great thanks to all the people who have put in much effort to
heal my daughter. We appreciate your love and care; may the
Almighty God reward you and protect you always.” |
| Extracts from
Acheru reports: |
| Kalungi
Praise, age nine. Admitted to Acheru on 21.8.2012 with
bilateral Blout’s disease (severe deformity of the legs).
She had been treated at several hospitals in 2006 and 2007, then
taken to a major Kampala hospital in 2008. She underwent surgery
in 2009 and 2010 but the deformity persisted. At Acheru, she was
referred for surgery and on 7th Dec had a bilateral osteotomy
and external fixation. She then had extensive physiotherapy at
Acheru and continued to improve. On 1st Feb 2013 the external
fixators were removed and on 25th Feb ‘hardware removal
post-corrective osteotomy’ was done. The deformity is
physically corrected, and it’s now hard to believe she once
had a deformity. |
| Owori
Solomon, age 17. Hit by a car in Jan 2013, suffering a
broken femur. Taken to a Kampala hospital, but self discharged
after 5 days when told he still had to wait for all the other
patients in the queue to be dealt with. He was then treated by
traditional bone setters for three months, with his condition
worsening. Brought to Acheru on 2md April with mal union of the
fracture and infection setting in. With the infection
controlled, he had surgery on 22nd May, and has since been
having rehabilitation, with a range of care bringing steady
improvement. |
| These are a
small selection from so many for whom Acheru has been life
changing. But there are still so many who need our help, and
thanks to the generous support we’ve received we can now
think about further work. A number of things are being
considered, with all the work being reviewed by the Acheru staff
and management committee as they work on proposals for us. |
| There is a need
for an improved kitchen at Acheru. The present one is small, and
there’s a problem with smoke. A separate kitchen block
could enable the present kitchen and preparation area to be
converted into a proper physiotherapy unit – treatment
facilities are stretched due to the rise in patient numbers. We’re
looking closely at how community work might develop. Harriet is
responsible for Community Based Rehabilitation, and we now also
have a social worker at Acheru and a CBR worker in the north.
They encounter a lot of needs in the community and we’re
looking at what help might be provided for disabled children and
their families who live in poverty, possibly by designating a
separate fund which can be used to provide appliances such as
wheelchairs, special seats or whatever other help might be
appropriate. This could be a significant development, as we can
understand how difficult it is for our workers to encounter need
and suffering and perhaps not be able to help. |
| We were
saddened to hear of the death of the government District Health
Officer of Oyam District in northern Uganda. He had worked very
closely with Acheru as we became established in the north,
opening doors and making introductions. He was very supportive
of our work, arranging a lot of practical help, and he will be
badly missed. We hope that his successor will also recognise the
need for our work and can develop a good working relationship
which will help us get into the more remote areas. |
| We’re
coming to the end of another year which has exceeded all our
expectations, and all of us involved with the work extend our
sincere thanks to those of you who have made it all possible. |
| Brian Dorman |
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