Ugandan Updates (Babies at Risk) ------ Part One

BABY BRENDA

See :October 2009- "Baby Brenda survives and thrives" http://mariemcgee.blogspot.com

Over the last 6 months, Mama Alfie has gifted me with a (live) chicken, potatoes and most recently fresh from the garden carrots!

Baby Brenda giving me the once over-March 3, 2010


Last August, a mom of seven brought her youngest baby in to be immunized, while she Oherself was admitted for treatment of Congestive Heart Failure. I noticed that the 6 week old was malnourished and quickly assessed that the Mom was just too ill to produce the breast milk necessary for her growth. So we tried a method suggested in the World Health Book, of taping an NG tube to the mothers breast and while the baby is sucking, she is both stimulating the mothers milk , as well as receiving fomula thru a syringe attached to the NG tube. . This ended up being very successful in Brenda's case but Mom needed a surgical procedure to improve her chances of staying alive to raise Brenda and her 6 other children. ------------It took time, numerous consults and some financial manuvering but the procedure was performed, Mom's medications altered and the miracle was evident in both Mom and Baby Brenda, who is now 8 mo.old, in this picture taken just last week.

Mama Alfie and Baby Brenda--never looked better- March 3, 2010


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BABY DANIEL

Daniel arrived to stay with me on Feb 1, 2009 (left pic)
25 days later , following regular meal and much TLC-this is how he had progressed (right pic)

. Remember Baby Daniel?(http://mariemcgee.blogspot.com---/ Sept 2008-"Love is Love-that's all" and Feb. 2009) Only a year ago, he was a severely malnourished 9 mo. old. Both he and his then 9 year old sister were in dire straights. Although she loved/loves him dearly, she was too young and not in a position to take care of his needs.

A major concerns was that Daniel's sister Immaculate attend school, as she had been unable to as full time caregiver to her baby brother. Recently Daniel's grandmother and sister came to visit and brought me a 1/2 dozen fresh eggs.

----We had much to celebrate, as not only was Daniel flourishing but Immaculate, who had been a sunken eyed "give me , give me, give me" little girl, who at first became deeply depressed when Daniel was taken away from her, has grown into a well nourished, happy little girl who now smiles and plays jump rope and attends school regularly.Yet she always evidences a deep love and longing for her baby brother in her enormous brown eyes.

While Potters Village secured a place for him in their home, I cared for him for one month. It was sometimes difficult as because he had not had sufficient nourishment, he never seemed satisfied and would stare at the bowl of food or bottle, while he was eating, as if it might disappear if his eyes ever lost sight of it..

----If you recall he had the swollen abdomen of a malnourished baby and the reddish tint in his hair, but had not yet progressed to the edema in his extremities that is often impossible to turn around. Only a month of good food and lots of TLC and he was ready to join his Potters Village family.

----Daniel is now a happy , healthy 22 mo old., living in Potters Village Childrens Home in Kisoro, Uganda. Here he is pictured with a visiting German woman -(Martina) who is his sponsor. They are optomistic that in a year or less he will be able to return to his family unit, which consists of his 10 year old biological sister, Immaculate, several cousins and the Grandmother of them all. This Grandmother is ,understandable ,overwhelmed as she has lost all of her childen and their spouses to HIV-Aids, with Daniel being one of 9 grandchildren left to raise.