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.