Quarterly report on the support of adolescents
Child and Family Foundation Uganda (CFU) team is excited to share our quarterly report of supporting the health needs of 1000 adolescents in rural Kamuli Uganda at https://goto.gg/50405with support from GlobalGiving donors and supporters. Your donations have enabled us to conduct a number of activities in the Kamuli district Busoga region, Eastern Uganda.
Integrated outreaches
Different services were offered to the community with the objective to offer free medical assessment, health education, and promotion of sexual gender-based violence and prevention of STIs.
reference Figure 1. Dr. Ssunna assessed the community in an integrated outreach at Butaaga village
Child days plus activities
In partnership with local government authorities in the Kamuli district, we were able to implement child day plus activities at Nawansaso Parish. Up to 35 adolescents HPV vaccine to prevent them from acquiring cervical cancer
Reference: Figure 2. CFU Medical team reaching the community in the Child day plus outreaches at Nawansaso Parish
Adolescent Family Care Groups (AFCGs)
Two AFCGs comprising 15 adolescents each were formed in our communities. These AFCGs have been trained on adolescent health and wellbeing education including but not limited to;
See youth group in Figure 3. CFU teams in partnership with DREAMS teams mentoring AFCG in the Lutunda zone
Impact of our activities
In Kiganda zone, Kawempe division slum settlements, we met an adolescent mother who was a victim of Sexual Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) with a severely malnourished child of six months who could not even sit. Her spouse left the family with a rent bill of 6 months to clear and no job to earn a living. After interventions and with support from GlobalGiving CFU was able to offer nutrition services, rented a house for the mother, and helped her to start up a small-scale business. On follow-up, the baby’s nutrition status had improved after using RUTF and the mother was also linked to a counselor at the facility who was able to give her counseling on SGBV.
See Figure 4. SGBV mother before intervention in Kiganda Zone and Figure 5. SGBV mother after interventions
We thank everyone for donating to this project since its inception.
In the last quarter, the Child and Family Foundation (CFU) screened 494 children. A total of fifty-three children were identified and enrolled in the program. Fifty-seven (30/53) percent of the children were found with severe malnutrition while 43% (23/53) were found to have moderate malnutrition. Half of the children enrolled in the program improved dramatically and have been discharged (See table 1 below).
Child and Family Foundation Uganda identified an expert client (meaning she has treated a child with malnutrition before). Gertrude is her name. she has four children under five years and three of whom are currently severely malnourished. One of her children was abandoned at her door by a neighbor who has since disappeared. This abandoned baby is 8 months now and severely malnourished. On further, examination, the baby was found to be exposed to HIV infection with pass oozing out of the left ear. She was enrolled at CFU and an HIV test has been ordered. In the meantime, the baby was put on the nutrition program where she receives plumpy nut and some antibiotics for her middle ear infection.
Child and Family foundation recorded a total of 71 clients who received Vitamin A and deworming from both static and community outreaches. These included 6 adults (1 male and 5 female) 15 years and above. During the outreaches, we conducted health education sessions with caretakers. Some of the topics discussed during the quarter included: caring for a malnourished child, how to identify malnutrition, positioning, and attachment during breastfeeding, optimal breastfeeding, complementary feeding, balanced diet, maternal nutrition during pregnancy and breastfeeding (lactating) when to take a child to the health facility, danger signs of illness and disease, caring and Feeding for a sick, optimal complementary feeding, and good hygienic practices. The health education sessions successfully engaged at least one male participant per session in order to support the mothers in the community knowing well that they are the breadwinners in this environment.
Due to the increased food scarcity during the COVID-19 era and subsequent lockdown since June 2021 for 42 days, we sought to teach the caregivers to look out for their children as regards severe malnutrition. Knowing that 45% of malnourished children die even after adequate rehabilitation, prevention is more than crucial at this time. To achieve this, we taught caregivers the concept of family MUAC (which simply means that the caretakers assess their children every week using a measuring tape to identify children who are getting mild malnutrition and refer these cases as early as possible to the child and Family Foundation nutrition program.
During this period, ~75 mothers with children 0-59 months have been trained on Family MUAC. Out of the 75 trained, 52 caregivers are able to take the screening measurements correctly.
In addition, screening for malnutrition, we also provided medical screening to these communities who hardly get a medical checkup due to affordability issues. In the reporting period, we were able to offer 22 clients a medical consultation and screened 35 adults for Blood Pressure (BP), and distributed medication (specifical antibiotics) to seven people depending on signs and symptoms. Two pregnant women who had not started antenatal care (ANC) at six months of pregnancy were counseled and linked to ANC clinic at CFU during the month of September 2021.
Some of the mothers had breastfeeding difficulties especially those with cerebral palsy, while others were facing gender-based violence and hence the difficulty in feeding themselves and the children.
There was this mother called Samantha, not real name, 24 years old who was experiencing a lot of psychological and physical gender-based violence. She was a new mother with a baby who was 4month old now. The mother is a homestay mom and skips meals every day to keep food for the husband who leaves 1.5 USD for lunch and supper but because the food is not enough, she opts to keep it all for supper. Unfortunately, she doesn’t get to cook it since the husband volunteered to prepare it, except that he doesn’t get back home before 9:00 pm. The mother continues to starve part of the night and if there are no woes that day, is when she gets to eat from home. Many times, her friend steel fully gives her food but if the husband found out that she eats from the neighborhood- that is an offense. If this trend continues, the newborn and the mother will surely become malnourished.
In sum, malnutrition continues to rage in our communities but with your generosity, we are able to find these children rehabilitate them, and also educate them on how to improve their nutrition habits and those of the children. Caretakers identified undergoing gender-based violence are linked to other community resources that can support them.
1.1 Child and Family Foundation Uganda (CFU) and together with the entire staff as a team are delighted to share the second report of SAVING LIVES OF MALNOURISHED CHILDREN IN UGANDA at https://goto.gg/48930and below are the results/ What we have done so far. We have screened 720 children and of all these, we identified 173 children from the community with acute malnutrition, 82 children have been treated and they have recovered however, 38 children have defaulted and need to be traced by the village health teams to ensure the children do not regress into a deathly state. We, therefore, need to support the village health workers to follow up on these children so they don't die in the community.
In addition, mothers' knowledge on malnutrition causes was improved through health education sessions by CFU staff. Several mothers were not aware of malnutrition and its causes. The health education session helped these mothers to change some of their behaviors and sought to feed the children on a healthy diet.
A mother with a child named Authority Jonah (name disguised) is up to now still wondering what we gave to her child that made him walk and gain weight after a period of 2 years of not walking. We assessed the child and was found to be with severe acute malnutrition with complications which we treated by giving the boy Ready to use feeds (RUTF) after the management of complications. We monitored the boy every two weeks for six weeks and the boy was responded well. We later educated her on how to maintain the child’s diet as it has been using local foods and then the child was discharged. A month later, the mother requested to work as our agent and we trained her to be among our village health team (VHT)
One of the village health team members who go out to screen children in the community every week was thankful “ever since CFU came to our community, people are now taking nutrition seriously. Before CFU came into our community, it was difficult to convince the community members on our own as VHTs. I know some family members who have benefitted from CFU nutrition services and they are very grateful”. In the same vein, CFU thanks everyone for donating to this project. All the 173 malnourished children received ready-to-use therapeutic foods (RUTF) and medical treatments. Eighty- two children have completely recovered and caught up with their milestones.
To identify more children with malnutrition like Jonah, is through the support and donations from the GlobalGiving platform. Support our project interventions at https://goto.gg/48930to enable us scale up the project interventions to reach more children and parents who are not aware that malnutrition is bad for their children if not managed in good time.
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Child and Family Foundation Uganda (CFU) Launches Saving Lives of Malnourished Children in Uganda
Child and Family Foundation Uganda (CFU) and together with the entire staff as a team are delighted to share this first report of SAVING LIVES OF MALNOURISHED CHILDREN IN UGANDA at https://goto.gg/48930 with support from GlobalGiving donors and supporters. The donations from GlobalGiving has enabled the CFU Team launch the screening of 52 children from poor families and identified 17 malnourished children in slum settlements of Kawempe North in Kampala city and in rural Nawansaso parish in Kamuli district in Eastern Uganda where children with malnutrition is high.
In preparation for the launch and later scale-up of the project activities, CFU has together trained 18 technical staff and 20 community health workers referred to as village health teams (VHTs) and sensitized community leaders in Kawempe North in Kampala city and in rural Nawansaso parish in Kamuli district. During the training and launch, VHTs were trained in screening and identification of children with malnutrition using the standard and recommended mid-upper-arm circumference (MUAC) tape and assessment of swelling for both feet as shown in this photograph.
We thank everyone donating towards this project as in this little time, we have established the foundation to scale-up the project activities. All the 17 malnourished children received ready-to-use therapeutic foods (RUTF) and medical treatments. All the 52 screened children received supplementary foods through our trained technical and VHT staff. The caretakers or mothers received knowledge on nutrition and disease prevention.
We are motivated with the GlobalGiving donations and support. Support our project interventions at https://goto.gg/48930 to enable us scale-up the project interventions to reach the desired targets, follow-up the identified malnourished children till recovery and empower affected families or caretakers with income generating skills and activities to prevent recurrences of malnutrition, other disease conditions and poverty.
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