Lim is a 56-year-old rice farmer from Cambodia. Lim's husband died ten years ago and they did not have children. She now lives with her niece and takes care of her niece's children, which she shared she treats like her own grandchildren. She enjoys taking care of her grandchildren and cooking for her family. In 2016, Lim sustained a left ankle fracture from a fall. She underwent an open reduction internal fixation surgery and the fracture and wound healed well. Now she can walk without pain but the hardware put in her left ankle needs to be removed. Since the bone is fully healed it is time for the hardware to be removed to avoid future complications such as exposed hardware or infection. Fortunately, surgeons at our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, can help. On September 25th, Lim will undergo a hardware removal procedure, which will cost $230. She will be able to walk easily and require no further treatment. Lim said, "I hope after the surgery I feel no pain and the wound heals quickly so I can return to normal life an no longer need to worry about my ankle on an infection."

Kiiza is a 39-year-old farmer from western Uganda. He is a married father of four. Kiiza's children are currently in school, with the firstborn in grade 7 and his last born in baby class. For the last five years, Kiiza has had a swelling on his abdomen just above the umbilicus. The swell has continuously become painful, especially when he does strenuous activities such as digging or lifting heavy loads. This has limited his ability to work optimally in the farm and affected his day to day activities. Kiiza had never been to the hospital before to seek care for this condition, citing that the pain was initially mild and that he faced financial constraints. However, recently, he had bouts of severe pain and decided to visit Watsi's Medical Partner Nyakibale Hospital. Kiiza was reviewed by the medical team and scan results indicate that he had a lipoma, or a fatty tumor located below the skin. He requires a mass excision procedure to remove the lipoma and to ultimately improve his quality of life. However, this procedure is costly for Kiiza and his family. When he was younger, he did not proceed with his education after primary school. As a result, he worked as a casual laborer, and saved his money to start a small retail shop. Unfortunately, he shared with us that at one point he was attacked and decided to abandon the venture. Currently, together with his wife, Kiiza is a farmer. With limited income, the family is not able to raise the funds needed for his surgery and are appealing for financial support. Fortunately, on December 22nd, surgeons will remove the mass. Now, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is requesting $196 to fund his procedure. Kiiza shared, “I hope to recover from this condition once I undergo my surgery and continue with farming to provide for my family.”

Vuthy is a 26-year-old construction worker and both of his parents are farmers. He has one brother and three sisters. In his free time Vuthy enjoys listening to music, playing games on his phone, doing house work, and meeting up with his friends. In 2015, Vuthy was in a motor vehicle accident that caused a closed fracture of his right knee. His family took him to a government hospital where pins were placed to heal the fracture. The bone has healed but the knee and thigh are stiff and he still has a lot of difficulty walking. When Vuthy learned about our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, he traveled for three hours seeking treatment. On December 25th, surgeons at CSC will perform a quadricepsplasty procedure of his right knee to help him walk again. Now, Vuthy needs help to fund this $430 procedure. Vuthy said, "I am hoping that once I am better from the surgery I can walk easily and my leg will feel better at last."

Ruth lives in the mountains of Haiti with her mother, grandmother, and four siblings. Our medical partner, Haiti Cardiac Alliance (HCA), tells us that eight-year-old Ruth "does not attend school, but likes helping her mother around the house, playing with her brothers and sisters, and singing." Ruth loses her breath and energy quickly, however, because she was born with a cardiac condition called ventricular septal defect. "A hole exists between the two lower chambers of her heart," HCA says. "Ruth also has down syndrome." Ruth's heart condition makes it difficult for her body to circulate and process her blood efficiently. HCA explains that "because she has lived for so long with this condition, there is a chance it may no longer be repairable, but the only way to determine this is by inserting a catheter into the chambers of her heart. Since this is not possible in Haiti, arrangements are being made to bring her to Dominican Republic to perform this extremely important test in the hopes that she can have heart surgery soon." For $1500, Ruth will be taken to the Dominican Republic for the catheterization procedure that will determine whether she is a candidate for heart surgery. If she is operable, she will be prepared for surgery as soon as possible. "We are very happy that there is hope for Ruth, and hope that she will be able to have surgery," her mother says.

Two-month-old Maritu lives with her family in Ethiopia. She was born with no anal opening—a condition known as anorectal malformation. Due to this, she is unable to pass stool normally. “Maritu presented with partial bowel obstruction at the age of one week,” our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMHF), explains. “A colostomy was performed urgently. Maritu has recovered both from the surgery and the obstructive symptoms but still has a colostomy and an imperforate anus. Now, she needs a definitive surgery for the correction of her anomaly.” Maritu’s father works as a farmer to provide for his six children, but he does not earn enough money to pay for the surgery that Maritu needs. For $1,500, Maritu will undergo an anorectoplasty to create a new anal opening so that she can pass stool normally. AMHF tells us that after surgery, “Maritu is expected to live a normal life.” Maritu’s father hopes that one day his daughter will be well enough to go to school.