| December
2015 report |
| Why Acheru
is needed |
| There are still
large areas of Uganda which remain beyond the reach of medical
services. Even if there is a hospital or clinic not too far away
children may go untreated, or may be badly treated resulting in
further problems. Children may suffer for years for lack of
effective intervention. |
| The stories of
the following two children from the north show why Acheru is
needed. |
| Abang
Evelyn Ketty is a 14 year old girl from Kal village in Gulu
district. She suffered ongoing problems following a fracture 4
years ago. She has now made a good recovery following treatment
at Acheru and says: |
| “The
knee became stiff. I couldn’t fold it because of pain and
it started bending from the side. The wound smelled and this
gave me a big challenge, my friends at school didn’t want
to associate with me and I also started hating myself. Going to
school became a problem because of the abuse I was going
through, and walking was so painful. At home it was the same and
I hated it so much. I am so happy for the treatment, it has
changed my life. I am no longer sad like it was before. I’m
going back to school and I’m sure nobody will laugh at me
again. I want to thank all people in Acheru for the hospitality
and the good work they are doing.” |
|
| The story of
Odoch Innocent is one of real determination in the face
of serious problems. He is 16 years old, from Bidati village in
Nuuoya district. He’s presently being treated at Acheru
following admission on 10th September, and the pictures show the
change which has already taken place. |
| “My
grandmother told me I was born with the problem and as I have
been growing and adding weight my legs have been getting more
deformed. I started experiencing pain but no treatment was given
as my grandmother is poor. It hasn’t been easy for me to
live with this condition. It became difficult for me to walk
because of the pain and it was worse during rainy seasons when I
used crawl due to lack of crutches to support me. School was
distant from home but I had no option because from my childhood
I love going to school. My grandmother couldn’t afford
treatment and staying deep in the village the situation became
worse. I have lived a difficult life with the pain and how
people are treating me because of my deformity. I come from a
community where people with disabilities are treated oddly, we
are given offensive nicknames and are treated as people who are
not able to do any kind of work. |
| It became
worse when I joined secondary school. Students treated me more
badly than I expected and this is portrayed in the language they
use to us, the names we are called, like ‘Langori’,
meaning a deformed person. I felt so discouraged because the
other students think I cannot perform well, they say that
teachers are cheating for me by giving me higher grades, they
think I can’t perform better than them because of my
physical appearance. Day to day activities weren’t easy,
things like getting food from the kitchen, taking water to the
bathroom. All these things made my self esteem low. At primary
school I used to participate in music, dance, and drumming but
that all stopped. I think the students despise me because of my
physical appearance.” |
| Innocent says
he will never forget the day his teacher gave him the news that
his legs could be corrected; it was amazing but also
frightening. He thought of them having to break his legs and the
pain he would endure as they put in metal to support his knees
till healing was complete. He is now so happy for the
counselling he received, resulting in him accepting the
treatment. |
| “I
have gone through much pain but it was worth it to get better. I
wanted to study to become a lawyer because I thought I would
only use a wheelchair to move about but now that Acheru has
worked hard to make sure I can walk, I will instead work hard to
be an orthopaedic surgeon, to help children who will have such
problems of movement like I had. From today onwards I’m
going to fulfill my dream.” |
| Great
thanks to all the people who have helped me. God bless them all.” |
|
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