Showing all patients at Arusha Lutheran Medical Centre (ALMC)

Ibrahim is a three-year-old boy from Tanzania. He comes from a big family and he is the fourth born child. His father works as a bodaboda driver. His mother used to work at a market selling produce, but now stays at home taking care of the couple's youngest child, who is an infant. Ibrahim has been diagnosed with bilateral genu varus, which means that his legs bow outward so that his knees do not touch. This condition is typically caused by an excessive accumulation of fluoride in the bones, which often stems from contaminated drinking water. As a result of his condition, Ibrahim has difficulty walking. Fortunately, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare (AMH), can help. On January 6th, Ibrahim will undergo corrective surgery at AMH's care center. Treatment will hopefully restore Ibrahim's mobility, allowing him to participate in a variety of activities and greatly decreasing his risk of future complications. Now, he and his family need help raising $880 to fund his procedure and care. Ibrahim’s mother shared, "I pray that my son does not grow with this disability because it keeps getting worse as he grows."

Nuru is a young girl with a big family. Her father is a cattle breeder. Cattle breeding has been hard for the past few years because of climate change, so the cattle have been dying because of starvation. Nuru has always wished to go to school, but it has been hard for her to start because the nearest school is located around 6 km away from home and her condition makes it impossible for her to walk that distance every day. Nuru was diagnosed with bilateral genu valgus. Her legs bow inward so that her knees touch. This condition is typically caused by an excessive accumulation of fluoride in the bones, which often stems from contaminated drinking water. As a result, Nuru has a difficult time walking. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is requesting $880 to fund corrective surgery for Nuru. The procedure is scheduled to take place on January 6th. Treatment will hopefully restore Nuru's mobility, allow her to participate in a variety of activities, and greatly decrease her risk of future complications. Nuru’s father says, “My daughter has been suffering for a while. I wish for her to be able to do what she wishes independently.”

Happiness is a student from Tanzania. The second-born child in a family of seven children being raised by their widowed mother, she wants to be a teacher. Her best subjects in school are Swahili, mathematics, social studies and history. She says she would love to learn English but it’s very difficult. But overall, she is always in the top ten children in her class. Happiness’s father passed away when she was six years old. A cattle seller, he was attacked by cattle rustlers and killed. This left the mother with children to care for by herself. Happiness’s mother now does small-scale farming to put food on the table for her children. Happiness was diagnosed with genu varus. Her legs bow outward so that she has difficulty walking. This condition is typically caused by an excessive accumulation of fluoride in the bones, which often stems from contaminated drinking water. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is requesting $880 to fund corrective surgery for Happiness. The procedure is scheduled to take place on December 7th. Treatment will hopefully restore Happiness's mobility, allow her to participate in a variety of activities, and greatly decrease her risk of future complications. Happiness's mother says, “Ever since her dad passed away, it has been hard for me to provide for the family on my own and pay for treatment."

Mbula is a young girl from Tanzania. She has one sibling and lives with her family in a remote area far from the city; it’s hard for them to access basic social services. Mbula is raised by two loving parents who are farmers. They depend on their harvest to provide for their family. With the recent years' weather changing and droughts, it has been hard for them because they cannot depend on the rainy season for agriculture. This has made it difficult to sustain food at home. Mbula was diagnosed with genu varus, which causes her legs to bow outward. This condition is typically caused by an excessive accumulation of fluoride in the bones, which often stems from contaminated drinking water. As a result, she has difficulty walking and running.. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is asking for $880 to fund corrective surgery for Mbula. The procedure is scheduled to take place on December 2nd. Treatment will hopefully restore Mbula's mobility, allow her to participate in a variety of activities, and greatly decrease her risk of future complications. Mbula’s mother says, “I feel sorry for my daughter, she has to go through pain almost every day.”

Eliana is a friendly and talkative young girl from Tanzania. She is the firstborn child in a family of three. Her parents both work as small-scale farmers, and they depend entirely on what they harvest for their daily living. When Eliana was two years old, her parents noticed that her left leg was swelling up and that she would limp when walking. They initially thought she had fallen and hurt herself, so they took her to a local dispensary, where she was prescribed pain relieving medication. Eliana was eventually diagnosed with genu valgus, which is a malalignment of the knees. This condition is typically caused by an excessive accumulation of fluoride in the bones, which often stems from contaminated drinking water. As a result, Eliana struggles to stand and cannot walk more than four steps without either experiencing pain or falling down. This has resulted in her having to crawl most of the time in order to move from one place to another. In 2020, Eliana had corrective osteotomy surgery, which fortunately helped correct her legs to a point where she can now enjoy walking and playing with other children. However, she requires a second-stage procedure in order to remove her implant so her condition can heal entirely. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is requesting $880 to fund corrective surgery for Eliana. The procedure is scheduled to take place on August 11th. Treatment will allow Eliana's legs to completely heal, fully restoring her mobility, and greatly decreasing her risk of future complications. Eliana’s grandmother says, “The first surgery my granddaughter got helped ease her walking. I believe this next surgery will make her legs even better.’’

Efraim is a 16-year-old high school student from Tanzania. Despite his difficulties walking, he loves playing football with his classmates! Efraim comes from a large family with 6 siblings. His parents are livestock keepers who also practice small-scale farming. They work hard to ensure that their family's day-to-day needs are able to be met. In 2020, Efraim sustained an injury to his leg while playing. On top of the pain he experienced, he noticed that his right leg began bending inward months later. He has since been diagnosed with genu valgus, a condition that causes the leg to bow inward and touch the opposite knee. As a result, he experiences difficulty working, playing, and doing any physically demanding activities. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is requesting $880 to fund corrective surgery for Efraim, which is scheduled to take place on August 9th. The goal of this treatment is to restore Efraim's mobility, allow him to participate in a variety of activities, and greatly decrease his risk of future complications. Efraim's mother says, "It scared the whole family when his leg started having problems, but when we heard that he could get treatment, it brought joy to us."

Joshua is a 7-year-old student from Tanzania who is in grade two and enjoys Mathematics and English. He also loves to play soccer. He comes from a family of seven children. His hardworking mother practices small-scale farming, as well as livestock keeping, in order to support their family since she is the sole provider. Joshua has been diagnosed with bilateral genu valgus, a condition that causes his legs to bow outward. This condition is typically caused by an excessive accumulation of fluoride in the bones, which often stems from contaminated drinking water. As a result, he is unable to fully enjoy games and sports with his classmates and siblings. This condition has also affected his day-to-day activities around the house. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is requesting $880 to fund corrective surgery for Joshua. The procedure is scheduled to take place on August 9th. Treatment will hopefully restore Joshua's mobility, allow him to participate in a variety of activities, and greatly decrease his risk of future complications. Joshua's mother shares, "As a mother, seeing my son play and walk freely gives me joy, and that is what I desire."

Khamisi is a six-year-old boy from Tanzania who loves playing soccer and watching cartoons. He is the youngest in a family of four children. His mother operates a grocery shop in the local market, and his father is currently in search of a job. Khamisi was diagnosed with genu valgus, a condition that causes his right leg to bow inward and touch his left knee. This condition is typically caused by an excessive accumulation of fluoride in the bones, which often stems from contaminated drinking water. As a result, Khamisi cannot walk long distances and has difficulty running and playing. Because of this, he misses out on playing comfortably and confidently with other children his age. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is requesting $880 to fund corrective surgery for Khamisi. The procedure is scheduled to take place on August 9th. Treatment will hopefully restore Khamisi's mobility, allow him to participate in a variety of activities, and greatly decrease his risk of future complications. Khamisi's mother says, "On our way here, we were praying that he gets the treatment required for his leg to be normal."

Nickson is a 5-year-old boy from Tanzania. Both he and his older brother live with and are being raised by their hardworking mother. She single-handedly supports her children by working as a secretary. Two years ago, Nickson mother took him to a hospital where he was diagnosed with genu valgus, a condition that causes his leg to bow inward. This condition is typically caused by an excessive accumulation of fluoride in the bones, which often stems from contaminated drinking water. As a result, Nickson has difficulty walking and is at risk of developing more complications as he grows up if the condition is not corrected. Although the hospital he visited provided him with medication, it did not improve his condition. Fortunately, surgeons at our medical partner's care center can help treat his condition. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is requesting $880 to fund corrective surgery for Nickson, which is scheduled to take place on August 5th. Treatment will hopefully restore Nickson's mobility, allow him to participate in a variety of activities, and greatly decrease his risk of future complications. Nickson's mother says, "I am a single mother with no husband supporting me. I try hard to provide, but it is not enough to afford my son's treatment cost."