In Uganda MEND provided essential support to the Katalemwa Cheshire Home for Rehabiliation Services to create the Masaka Outreach Centre. This centre covers four districts in Central Uganda and provides much-needed physiotherapy services, occupational therapy, and fitting of prosthetics and orthotics.
The centre helps children with disabilities who have missed out on treatment and the opportunity to overcome the challenges that severely affect their wellbeing.
Masaka Outreach Centre Objectives:
- To examine and assess children with disabilities
- To increase awareness of childhood disability in the communities of greater Masaka.
- To provide rehabilitation services and recommend appropriate referrals.
- To recommend and fit appropriate assistive devices
In just the month of May 109 young patients were seen, assessed, treated, referred and underwent rehabilitation.
Home-Based Care Services
Home visits are very important because it can be difficult and expensive for families to travel far, so our Occupational Therapist, Yasin, travels to them. At this stage he doesn’t have his driver’s license, and has to hire a driver, so MEND is paying for his driving lessons and the licence so he can travel further and reach more families.
Due to poverty most families have lost hope of any medical help for their child. So these home visits are imperative and also change attitudes of family members to childhood disability.
What is Hydrocephalus?
Hydrocephalus is a build-up of fluid in the cavities deep within the brain. It is common and usually untreated in East Africa. We see it a lot in Uganda and as you can read below it usually accompanies other disabilities. Around 60% of cases are caused by infections in the first few months of a baby’s life. It is treatable, but if not, this leads to pressure on the brain, damage to the brain and eventually an early death.
Masaka Outreach Centre – Patient Stories (photos on way):
Sango is an 8 year old girl with spina bifida and hydrocephalus and knee flexion contractures. She was operated at Mbale but did not receive any rehabilitation due to lack of funds and accessibility to the services. She will benefit from casting to make the knees straight and splints to enable her to walk with crutches.
After a series of castings her knees are now straight and Sango has started on walking training.
Jeremiah managed to get his artificial limb made out of Indian components this month with support from MEND & We Help Two. He is happy and enjoying school.
As a 12 year old boy his left knee was amputated as a result of vascular malformation. The mother had lost hope of her child walking again but after being referred to Katalemwa Cheshire Home, her hope was restored. Now the mother and child have a reason to smile. He can move freely at school and play with friends.