In Africa, Uganda has the 5th highest burden of Sickle Cell Disease, with an estimated 25,000 babies born annually with the disease. Sickle Cell Disease contributes 25% to the Child Mortality Rate in Uganda, with an estimated 80% of these deaths occurring before the age of 5. Many others have to deal with complication of the disease including stroke, need for blood transfusion etc.
Even though they have heard about Sickle Cell Disease from friends and family, many people still are unaware of the cause, not helped by deep-rooted stigma from some parts of society where individuals can be labelled as cursed. At Kiwoko Hospital, efforts have been made by our Community Based Health Care team to educate the population about the disease, its cause, prevention and treatment.
Additionally, we have a Sickle Cell Clinic providing specialised care for 260 registered patients. Each patient visits the clinic once a month to be reviewed by the team and receive a refill of their medications, including antimalarials, antibiotics and folic acid. Patients are assessed and laboratory investigations (including Malaria, Full Blood Count, Hb Electrophoresis, Liver Function Test and Renal Function Tests) may be required. Sadly, many of our patients cannot afford these tests!
Would you be interested in financially supporting the services provided by the Sickle Cell Clinic? If so, please get in touch.
Linda.
