May 15, 2006
Dear All,
Hello again from Malawi, and thanks for allowing us a hiatus
in the letter-writing department. We missed you, but we were so
busy! The children’s ward got up to 160 inpatients. With
40 to 50 admissions and discharges a day, we cared for about 200
inpatients daily, and numerous outpatients as well. We were so
proud that most of the kids did well with expeditious blood transfusions
and the nutritious food provided by your gifts. Money sent for
medicine allowed us to purchase adequate stocks of essential drugs
so that we have not run out of things like quinine, gentamycin,
and penicillin this year, as we have in the past.
Our goal is to have adequate funds to purchase almost all of
our drugs and surgical supplies at international mission-oriented
suppliers like IDA (International Dispensary Association), since
our cost is much lower than when we buy things in country, and
the quality and availability are much better.
The harvest has arrived in Malawi, and now that the southern
parts of the country have gathered their maize, people are beginning
to have a bit more food. I have been to a
conference about ready-to-use therapeutic food, called RUTF,
which major non-governmental organizations like UNICEF, Concern,
etc. are thinking about providing to developing countries. RUTF
is such a hot item that it has been difficult to buy for the last
year, but we are continuing to pursue it due to the ongoing needs
of children in our area. In their honor, I would like to describe
the life of a malnourished child.
For most children in sub-Saharan Africa, malnutrition starts
at the moment of conception of their mothers. That is, the mother
herself is malnourished as a fetus and as a young child, never
growing, developing, nor learning as well as she should. She often
enters her reproductive life stunted, anemic, underweight, and
educationally and economically disadvantaged, a deficient host
for her growing fetus, and she suffers from an incredibly high
maternal mortality rate. The child in question is this a malnourished
fetus, having lower birth weight, lower iron and other micronutrient
stores, lower growth and stunting as an under-5 child.
Stunting is a mark of chronic malnutrition and is strongly associated
with increased infant mortality, poorer intelligence and development,
and increased risk of acute malnutrition, which is defined as
low weight for height. Many of the food programs concentrate on
acute malnutrition, so there is a large population of kids in
developing countries that never catch up nutritionally, health-wise,
or intellectually. I am so grateful for the assistance we have
received to provide emergency food for acutely malnourished children,
yet I yearn for a situation where every child will be able to
grow and to thrive as he should.
A joyful note related to a previous letter: our medical assistant
Daniel, whose wedding I attended, and who wanted to become a clinical
officer, has just been accepted to begin training next month.
He will be a great asset when his training is finished.
We ourselves are growing and thriving, and we appreciate your
continued prayers and support. The girls are just about to finish
their school year and are looking forward to summer vacation.
Blessings to all!
Barbara
The 2006 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p.
337 |
