50-year-old Kyomugisha lives in a small village in Uganda with her husband and their nine children, five of whom are still in school. Kyomugisha stays at home to take care of the house and children, and her husband works as a casual laborer doing odd jobs in the community. She has a kitchen garden where she cuts bananas for her family and fetches water from a stream eight kilometers away. Kyomugisha has a goiter, or an enlarged thyroid. The swelling causes severe pain, difficulty breathing and eating, and palpitations. The pain from the goiter began in 1998, according to our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMHF). At the time, Kyomugisha could not afford the necessary surgery. Once she learned about the Watsi partnership at Nyakibale Hospital, she came to seek medical assistance. $170 will fund Kyomugisha’s thyroidectomy, which will remove the goiter and allow her to recover fully. “She will be free from the pain, palpitations, and be able to work well,” says AMHF. “I am scared of surgery but because I hope to be strong afterwards, I am encouraged that it will go well,” shares Kyomugisha.

This is 13-year-old Visal, a student in Cambodia who wants to be a teacher when he grows up. Outside of school, he likes to play football and other games. "When Visal was three, he was in a traumatic accident that fractured his elbow," our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC), shares. "He cannot bend his elbow and it is difficult for him to hold or carry things with his left arm. Visal tells us his elbow is very painful." Visal received Khmer traditional treatment for three months back in his province, but his condition did not improve. After hearing about CSC on the radio, he traveled three hours with his grandmother to reach CSC for proper treatment. With $405, doctors will perform an ORIF (open reduction and internal fixation) operation to realign the fractured bone in Visal's arm and use metal screws to hold it in place. He will then be given a splint to support his arm while the bone properly heals. This procedure will allow Visal to use his left arm again without any pain. After his surgery, Visal will be able to continue to pursue his dreams of becoming a teacher.