FRIENDS OF SICK CHILDREN - QUEEN ELIZABETH HOSPITAL MALAWI.
I DECIDED TO ADD ANOTHER GOOD CAUSE. WHY?
February and March 2024 I worked in Blantyre, a town in Southern Malawi. I worked at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital, which is a large academic hospital. Although I have traveled and worked in many places around the globe, the things I have experienced these two months are amongst the most intense and impressive. So many sick patients and challenging circumstances. Everybody is working so hard to make it work. It’s putting things in perspective, it had me genuinely silent for a while…
Approximately three hundred children are admitted in this hospital. During my stay I observed the situation, I thought: what can I do to relieve this hardship right here, right now. Even if it’s just a tiny little bit. The thing I felt I could provide within my circle of influence was: clean clothes. How I came up with that? Families go through an immense logistical challenge when their child gets sick, they seek help in a local health center, mostly in the countryside. When the advice is to go to the hospital in Blantyre, it takes them a couple of days to gather enough money to pay for transport. From there it will take multiple hours to reach Blantyre. I noticed they don’t have much extra stuff - if anything at all - with them. Just one or two pair of clothes for days, if not weeks, in the hospital. I found this amazing LOCAL organization called DAPP Malawi. They promote social and economic development in Malawi. Amongst other things they have shops where they sell high quality, secondhand clothes. The proceeds of these shops are re-invested in different projects in Malawi, a beautiful circle. I went there, bought clothes, took them to the hospital. Ten euro = a full bag of clothes, enough for 5 kids. To make the stay in the hospital a bit more bearable. From there the nurses distributed the clothes for me.
HOW TO PROCEED?
There is of course need for many important things like medication, equipment, etc. Huge efforts are being made by the medical staff to provide these things. I decided to donate part of the funds from V.is.for.Bird. to this very special hospital and the hugely dedicated people working there.