Nay is a 35-year-old woman from Thailand. She lives with her husband in Mae Pa Village in Tak Province. One and half year ago, they moved from Shwegyin Township, Bago Division in Burma for a better job opportunities. Nay stopped working as a day laborer because her health deteriorated. Now, her husband is the only earner and he is also a day laborer making limited income. Around eight months ago, Nay had a high fever and stomachache. She was also vomited a few times so her employer took her to Mae Tao Clinic (MTC). When she arrived, she received an IV as well as oral medications. She was admitted for one day and then she felt better and returned home. Two days later after she got home, she felt stomachache again in the right side and also vomited. Again, her employer took her back to MTC and she was admitted again. She received oral medications as well as an ultrasound test. After an ultrasound, the medic informed her that she has a stone in her common bile duct as well as in the intrahepatic duct. She was then referred to Watsi Medical Partner Mae Sot Hospital (MSH) for further investigation. At MSH she received another ultrasound as well as a blood test and an X-ray. She was given oral medications to take home and she was asked to return to the hospital once a month for follow up. She went to MSH several times for follow-up appointments and she kept receiving oral medications for her stomachache problem. On February 11th, she went back to MSH as usual and she received another blood test. After that she was told that she has stone in her common bile duct and she needs to be admitted for surgery to remove the stone. Nay has been advised to undergo a cholecystectomy, the surgical removal of the gallbladder. If left untreated, Nay's symptoms will continue to worsen and put her at risk for further health complications in the future. After seeking treatment through our medical partner, Burma Children Medical Fund (BCMF), Nay is scheduled to undergo her cholecystectomy on March 24th. BCMF is requesting $1,500 to cover the total cost of Nay's procedure and care. Nay said, “I want to work after my surgery so that our family will have enough income and now I am very sad that because of my condition we may have to borrow money from our neighbor.”

Ma Ni is a 30-year-old woman from Burma. In her free time, she likes to pray to Buddha. She and her husband work as government officers. Together they earn 414,000 kyat (approx. $414 USD) per month, which is not enough for any safety net after they pay their bills for utilities and other household expenses. One day in July 2019, Ma Ni stood up from her desk at work and had pain in her hip joints. She had to push her hand against her hips to help her walk. She did not think there was anything seriously wrong so she did not seek medical attention. However, two weeks after this incident, when she was going to work, she slipped and fell in front of her house. Right away her hips started to hurt and two weeks later, the pain gradually became severe. Her condition worsened day by day, although she visited several hospitals and had taken medications. Currently, Ma Ni has a lot of pain in her hips. She cannot walk for more than two minutes or the pain becomes unbearable. She does not feel comfortable when she lays down and has problems sleeping from the pain. She also needs help going to the bathroom and taking a shower. Fortunately, Ma Ni learned about Watsi's medical partner, Burma Children Medical Fund (BCMF). At BCMF's care center, surgeons can perform a total hip replacement to relieve Ma Ni of her pain and allow her to walk easily. Treatment is scheduled for December 17th, and Ma Ni needs help raising $1,500 to pay for this procedure. Ma Ni said, "I had to send my son to my mother’s place in Mawlamyine and my husband also had to ask for leave. [When fully recovered] I want to take back my son from my mother and send him to school. I will support him in whatever he wants to become when he grows up.”

Sara is a 27-year-old construction worker from Cambodia. Sara and his wife were married five years ago and they have one two-year-old son. Sara and his wife are both construction workers. He enjoys taking care of his son, doing housework, and listening to the radio. Earlier this month, Sara was shocked by electricity when working on the rooftop of a house. It caused electricity burns on both of his hands. He first went to a provincial government hospital for treatment but left when the only option they presented to him was to amputate both hands. He is now unable to use his hands. When Sara learned about our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, he traveled for four and a half hours seeking treatment. On September 29th, surgeons at CSC will perform a debridement procedure to to help him preserve and heal both hands. Now, he needs help to fund this $787 procedure. Sara said, "I hope I can regain the use of my hands as soon as possible. My wife and I are worried so much about the loss of my hands because I will not be able to support my family without them."

Josephine shared that she has been struggling with chronic lower back pains for 7 years. She has been under medication and physiotherapy, but without improvement. Doctors recommend a Lumbar Discectomy Surgery to avert the possible advance effects of the condition, which could affect her backbone and the spinal cord. If not treated, Josephine risks having prolonged pains, numbness, and loss of muscle strength that can result in paralysis. Josephine's back problems started in November 2012 while she was doing her laundry. She felt clicking sound on her lower back accompanied by sharp pains. She visited a nearby hospital for treatment. Josephine was put on physiotherapy and pain medication. For the last 7 years, she has been visiting different health facilities but her condition keeps deteriorating. Josephine was referred to Watsi's Medical Partner Care Center Kijabe Hospital by a friend who had received the same treatment in the facility. Josephine doesn’t have a source of income. She is a full time housewife who has dedicated all her time to raising their three children aged between 4-13 years, and taking care of her family. They live in a two-roomed house that costs $30 per month. Her husband is a lorry driver and their family depends on his sole source of income to pay rent, school fees, medical expenses, and for survival. Josephine depends on her husband’s medical cover where she is listed as a beneficiary. Several trips to different hospital has depleted their coverage and family’s little resources. They have been also been relying in the the national health insurance fund which can cover only part of the total cost of the surgery and treatment. She is appealing for financial aid to support the remaining cost of $1,500. Josephine says, “I have lived with this pain for long but it’s now becoming unbearable. I need this surgery and treatment to get my life back to normal again."

Susan is married and blessed with five children, they all live together on their small-scale farm. She is entirely reliant on her farm produce for income. In her previous hospital admission, the family exhausted all of their savings and had to hold a funding drive to help pay for the bill. Early in June, as Suzan was walking down a staircase she fell and injured her right ankle. She was rushed to a dispensary where first aid was administered and she was referred to their district hospital where an x-ray was done and a cast was placed. She was admitted for two weeks without any review by the doctor. So, she requested a discharge and came to our facility because she is not able to walk and is still in pain. Fortunately, surgeons at our medical partner can help. On July 3rd, Susan will undergo a fracture repair procedure, called an open reduction and internal fixation. This is procedure will help her walk easily again and no longer be in pain. Now, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $1,500 to fund this procedure. "I will be happy to be able to help my husband with farm work," Susan shared.

Abdulkirim is a baby from Ethiopia. He is a cute boy who loves to play with other children and with his mom. He is a happy child and has one sibling. Abdulkirim underwent a colostomy, in which the end of the colon is brought through an opening in the abdominal wall. This surgery is often performed to bypass bowel malformations, but colostomies are usually temporary and may call for closure. In Abdulkirim's case, his colostomy requires closure in order to restore bowel function and prevent future complications. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $1,057 to cover the cost of a colostomy closure for Abdulkirim. The surgery is scheduled to take place on June 30 and, once completed, will hopefully allow him to live more comfortably and confidently. Abdulkirim's mom shared, "We sold all our animals and we asked for help from our community twice. When we came to Addis Ababa, our son had already undergone two operations and we were struggling with finances. We were out of money to even pay for our hotel. I was so worried and afraid, but we are now hopeful that he will get the surgery and it will be successful. We hope he will grow up to be a healthy boy and achieve a lot by getting a good education.”

John is a 45-year-old man who is married with 5 children (20yrs, 16yrs, 11yrs, 9yrs, and 7yrs). Two of his children are in a secondary school and the youngest three are in a public primary school. John withdrew from the school while he was in eighth grade as a result of financial problems. His other siblings also did not continue due to the same problem. He and his siblings are all manual laborers for survival. John is not financially stable. His father passed away and he lives with his elderly mother. John farms khat and some cash crops and his wife helps on the farm. Through their both efforts, they are able to make enough to support their family as well as their aged mother. John and his family, live in a small timber house, within his father’s homeland. During the COVID 19 pandemic, no khat business is going on, which means the economy is very low. John is an epileptic and he arrived at the hospital with back burns which have resulted in a chronic wound. During the interview, he said that he fell on the hot charcoal cooker while preparing tea after suffering an epileptic episode. He was taken to a private clinic for burn dressing. Within a few days, his condition deteriorated and he was referred to a surgeon, who recommended him for debridement to treat his would. A lack of treatment will lead to wound infection and continued bleeding.

Ratha has one sister and one brother. She attends kindergarten and already enjoys Khmer books and reading as her favorite subject. Ratha likes to drink milk :) and she wants to be a doctor when she grows up. Her mother is a rice farmer and her father is a construction worker. Ratha was born with scoliosis. Her parents took her to a local public hospital for treatment, but unfortunately their surgeries made her worse off. She is in pain and it is now hard for her walk. She has now been absent from school during this time and needs a corrective spinal surgery with rods distraction to treat her scoliosis. Ratha's mother shared, "she can't do anything, which makes me worry very much about her treatment. I hope that the surgery will be done well, so my daughter can walk again and return to school."

Bres is a 38-year-old rice and vegetable farmer from Cambodia. He is married with one son and two daughters. When he is finished working, he enjoys listening to music and spending time with his children. Twenty-three years ago, Bres had an ear infection. This infection caused a cholesteatoma, or an abnormal skin growth, to develop in the middle ear behind the ear drum. For this reason, Bres experiences dizziness, discharge, tinnitus, pain, and hearing loss. He is unable to hear others clearly and cannot communicate easily. Bres traveled to our medical partner's care center to receive treatment. On March 9th, he will undergo a mastoidectomy procedure in his right ear. During this procedure, ENT surgeons will remove the cholesteatoma. Our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, is requesting $925 to fund this procedure. This covers medications, supplies, and inpatient care. "I hope that the ear discharge and the ear infection stops, and my hearing improves," he shared.

Ko Myo Zaw is a 41-year-old man who lives with his wife in Burma. He and his wife used to work as a seamster and sew children’s clothing. However, Ko Myo stopped working more than a year ago because of his poor health and he now relies on his wife’s income. On the 18th of June 2018, Ko Myo developed pain in his left waist after sitting for a long time. He then had to stand up every two hours to reduce the pain. This continued for a few more months, until he was no longer able to work. A year after he first experienced these symptoms, he went to Myawaddy Hospital to see a doctor. He received an x-ray and ultrasound which revealed he has a kidney stone in his left kidney. The doctor gave him medication to breakup the stone and Ko Myo took the medication for one year. The medication reduced the pain during the first month, but returned a month after that. By the 29th of May 2019, he could no longer take the pain and went to see the doctor at Myawaddy Hospital. The doctor then gave him stronger medications to reduce the pain and break up the stone. At the suggestion of a neighbor, he decided to seek treatment at Mae Tao Clinic (MTC) across the border in Thailand, which he was told provides charitable health care. On 5th of October 2019, he arrived at MTC. The next day, he was brought to the local hospital where he received an ultrasound and an appointment to undergo laser treatment to breakup the kidney stone. He took out a loan to pay for the first round of treatment on November 24th, 2019. When he returned to the clinic in January to undergo a follow-up ultrasound, he was told they also found stones in his right kidney. Unable to pay for further treatment, Ko Myo was referred to Watsi Medical Partner Burma Children Medical Fund for assistance in accessing further treatment. Ko Myo's next appointment to undergo a second round of laser treatment will be on Jaunary 28th. He will complete treatment for the kidney stone in his left kidney, before he receives treatment for the stones in his other kidney. Currently, Ko Myo still has pain in his waist. Sometimes he feels tired and the area around his left waist feels hot. "Once I recover I would like to go back to work and pay back my loan," said Ko Myo.

Years back, Samuel noticed that over time, his hearing dwindled. It all began with him tuning on high TV/ Radio volume and speaking very loudly. He recently decided to visit Kijabe hospital for a review. After his tests were completed, the doctors confirmed loss of hearing and recommended he be fitted for hearing aids. The cost to acquire them was however too high for Samuel to afford. The former public transport driver was forced to quit his job as he could not manage. He currently doesn’t attend church. Samuel and his wife tend to their small farm to sustain their needs. They live in their two-room rental house in a suburb in Nairobi. Their two children are grown and living off on their own. They are not able to raise the funds needed and thus appealing for help. “I will be more than happy to get my life back. I would lie to attend church and family gatherings comfortably,” says Samuel.

David is a construction worker from Kenya. He is a widowed father of two children. He worked on construction sites to be able to support his children. Around August this year, David was headed home when a speeding vehicle hit him from the back and sped off. Some good Samaritans picked him up and brought him to Kijabe hospital where he was found to have a left leg double fracture. He is not able to walk and is restricted to a wheelchair. David is also in pain. Fortunately, surgeons at our medical partner can help. On November 29th, David will undergo a fracture repair procedure, called an open reduction and internal fixation. Treatment will enable David to walk again and work so that he can provide for his children. Now, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $1,451 to fund this procedure. “I kindly request for financial help to get independent once again,” says David.