Rutchel is a 16-month-old girl from the Philippines. She lives in a rental house with her parents and four siblings. Rutchel’s father is a hollow block maker, and her mother stays home to care for the children. Rutchel has been diagnosed with moderately acute malnutrition.
Rutchel began $184 malnutrition treatment on October 18, 2016.
Rutchel is being treated by International Care Ministries (ICM), a Watsi medical partner. One out of five children under 5 in ICM communities is either severely or moderately acutely malnourished. Worldwide, poor nutrition is associated with nearly half of all deaths in young children. In remote communities and urban slums of the Philippines, the lack of clean water and unclean environments add risk to potentially fatal childhood diseases.
ICM’s Home-Based Feeding program provides nutrient-enriched food packs to ensure malnourished children get additional food to regain normal weight and achieve optimum physical and mental development. After identifying a child as malnourished, staff and community volunteers make weekly visits to monitor this child’s progress. To help sustain the health of the child, ICM’s professional staff educate the mother, guardian, or other family members about proper nutrition, sanitation, hygiene, and organic vegetable gardening.
“My prayer is that Rutchel will become strong and healthy,” says Rutchel’s mother. “I really hope that she will be free from sickness.”
