Meet Norma

Success! Norma from Guatemala raised $512 to recover from acute malnutrition.

Photo of Norma post-operation
$512
raised
$0
to go
Fully funded
Norma's treatment was fully funded on October 11, 2016.
  • Norma's story
  • Norma's update
September 5, 2016
January 12, 2017

Since Norma began to receive treatment, she has been gaining lots of weight. She has more energy, wants to play more, and is learning more w...

Read more

Norma's Timeline

  • September 5, 2016
    PROFILE SUBMITTED

    Norma was submitted by Jessica Hawkins at Wuqu’ Kawoq

  • September 5, 2016
    TREATMENT OCCURRED

    Norma received treatment at Clinic Panajachel in Guatemala. Medical partners often provide care to patients accepted by Watsi before those patients are fully funded, operating under the guarantee that the cost of care will be paid for by donors.

  • October 6, 2016
    PROFILE PUBLISHED

    Norma's profile was published to start raising funds.

  • October 11, 2016
    FULLY FUNDED

    Norma's treatment was fully funded.

  • January 12, 2017
    TREATMENT UPDATE

    Norma's treatment was successful. Read the update

Meet another patient you can support

100% of your donation funds life-changing surgery.

Charity is a 60-year-old woman from Uganda. She grew up in a family of eight children, she is the fifth-born, with four brothers and three sisters. Her siblings all have families of their own and are farmers. After losing their father at a young age, their mother, who was also a farmer, could not afford school fees for all of them but managed to support Charity until she completed seventh grade. Charity and her husband are blessed with five sons. One works as a butcher, one works as a day labor on other people's farms, and the remaining three children are still in school. To make ends meet, Charity grows food crops for home consumption and sells the surplus to generate income for her family. Her husband works as a builder. About a year ago, Charity began to experience troubling symptoms, including a swelling on the front of her neck. Initially, it was painless, but she later began experiencing shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, frequent headaches, and painful swallowing. At first, she relied on painkillers, but they provided no relief. One day, while with a friend who noticed a significant increase in the size of her neck, she was advised that it could be a goiter. She then visited a hospital, but she was unable to raise the money needed for the procedure and returned home. For the past few months, she has been using traditional remedies, but none have provided any relief. While listening to a radio talk show, she learned about a surgical support program at Nyakibale Hospital that assists patients with conditions like hers. She decided to seek care there. She was diagnosed with a goiter. The thyroid is the gland located in front of your neck and produces thyroid hormones. These hormones are responsible for functions such as metabolism, growth and other bodily functions. She needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is helping Charity receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on July 7th at Karoli Lwanga Hospital. Surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $252, and she and her family need help raising money. Charity says, “I don’t see any where to get the money needed for my surgery, but I have hopes that with your support, my surgery will be successful and I will get better.”

$70raised
$182to go