Medicine for HIV+ Children in Uganda

We thank each and every one of you who have donated towards this project. Wow! What a difference you have made in the lives of many, many children throughout Uganda! 

At this time, AFCA will not be providing anti-retroviral medicine to children in Uganda, as their government is able to do so, releasing us to help other children who need our help even more. This is how AFCA works - we get a program to a specific place and then, we let them fly. It is time for our Ugandan partner to fly.

Again, thank you.

On behalf of the children,

Tanya

Rachel is 7 years old and was receiving treatment for malaria at another clinic in September 2019.  During routine testing, Rachel tested HIV positive, and was referred to Baylor Uganda for HIV management.  Her mother claimed to have tested HIV negative when she was pregnant with her and declined to be tested.  She was later educated on the need for her and her husband to be tested.  They both tested positive and are now under the care of a doctor.

While at Baylor, Rachel was diagnosed with acute malnutrition, pneumonia and tuberculosis and started on treatments.  While still on TB treatment, she progress to advanced HIV with chronic lung disease.  She was started on medications which were never stocked, but we were able to use funds from the American Foundation for Children with AIDS to procure lifesaving drugs for Rachel.  The pneumonia was treated and she completed her TB treatment in June of this year.  Rachel is now stable and her mother is very excited about her progress and her ability to return to school after the COVID-19 lockdown.

Everyone here at the American Foundation for Children with AIDS, and our partners in Africa, thank you for your continued support of this important project.  If you would like to learn even more about this project and others, please contact Tanya Weaver at tweaver@AFCAids.org. 

Kameron is one of the peer volunteers at the clinic and he was rushed into the clinic after 2 days not being able to talk. He was brought into us in a confused mental state, in and out of consciousness. Caretakers reported that he had received treatment from a nearby clinic, but could not provide any documentation. Emergency care was given and an ambulance was called to transport him to the hospital and he was admitted.

He was diagnosed with meningitis. Two days later, he developed a blood clot and the hospital had run out of lifesaving drugs. The medicines to manage these conditions are very expensive, and Kameron being a clinic volunteer, could not afford this treatment.

Thanks to the AFCA funds, we were able to procure medicines for his treatment throughout the two weeks period he was admitted. He has now recovered from both the meningitis and the blood clot is gone as well.  Kameron has been discharged from the hospital and is regaining his energy and getting ready to come back to the clinic to serve his fellow patients.

Everyone here at the American Foundation for Children with AIDS, and our partners in Africa. thank you for your continued support of this important project.  If you would like to learn even more about this project and others, please contact Tanya Weaver at tweaver@AFCAids.org. 

Kurt started attending the Baylor Clinic at 8 years of age.  He has basically grown up in the clinic and has been batting epilepsy ever since. He currently lives with his aunt following the death of his mother in 2008.  As a result of consistently missing doses of anti-epilepsy medicine due to various reasons like irregular supply, Kurt has been having seizures more frequently ... affecting is education and physical activities.

Kurt managed to complete his primary exams 4 years ago but was unable to continue due to his deteriorating metal state in terms of concentration and ability to remember what he has been taught. His aunt decided to enrol him in a vocational institute to learn welding but he was eventually dismissed from the institution when he had a seizure in a metal workshop and fell on electric cables for fear that the next seizure could be fatal.

Now with a constant supply of medicines from AFCA, Kurt has been able to stabilize and reports fewer seizures than before. He now owns a bicycle and fetches water for people to earn a living. He is very thankful for the support he receives from the clinic.

The team here at the American Foundation for Children with AIDS thanks you for supporting this project and the work we do for the children in Africa.  As you make decisions regarding your end of year giving, please keep us in mind so we can continue our good work in 2020 and beyond.  We wish you a new year full of many blessings and as much hope as you have shared with us.  If you would like to learn even more about what we do or how you can meet some of the children you have helped, please contact Tanya Weaver at tweaver@AFCAids.org. 

In January 2011 Florence and her children were enrolled in care in HIV care at Baylor Uganda. Florence was enrolled with hypertension disease which later progressed to a kidney failure. She was then recommended for a kidney transplant in India. Her family contributed enormously to this cause which later happened. Florence narrates that this trip to India left her family with barely no single penny in the pocket. After the kidney transplant, Florence was further prescribed immune suppressant drugs which she takes daily in order to maintain the foreign kidney in her body. These drugs were so costly and this aggravated the already existing financial burden on her family. This saw Florence miss her medicines on several occasions but also could no longer meet basic needs for the family and especially for her HIV infected child. She and her family were always worried and starting to lose hope.

Thanks to AFCA funds, Baylor Uganda procured these badly needed drugs for Florence so she could now access them for free. This greatly improved her health and restored a great sense of hope again in her life. She felt she could now live longer to watch over her HIV infected child. The family got a huge relief and can now save some monies for other basic needs for the household.

Everyone here at the American Foundation for Children with AIDS, and our partners in Africa. thank you for your continued support of this important project.  If you would like to learn even more about this project and others, please contact Tanya Weaver at tweaver@AFCAids.org.