Uwimaana is a 26-year-old mother of three from Uganda. She is a housewife and her husband is a peasant farmer. He cultivates maize, though only on a small scale due to the limitations of their small plot of land. The money that he makes is spent on the education of their two school-aged children, as well as on the family’s basic needs.
Uwimaana developed a swelling in her upper abdominal region when she was pregnant four years ago. After her delivery the swelling kept increasing in size. In 2015 she visited a hospital where she was diagnosed with hernia, a condition in which part of the intestinal tissue bulges through a weakened area in the abdominal wall.
At the time of Uwimaana’s diagnosis, she was told that she required surgery as an only means of treatment. However, due to her inability to pay for the procedure, she did not have the surgery and never returned to the hospital.
Uwimaana’s hernia causes her abdominal pain that worsens after meals, and makes it difficult for her to lift heavy items. “If I didn’t have children to feed I wouldn’t be going to the garden to dig because it gives me more pain,” she shared.
If left untreated, Uwimaana may develop intestinal incarceration, obstruction, or strangulation.
For $220, we can fund Uwimaana’s hernia repair surgery. Her protruding intestinal tissue will be returned to the abdominal cavity and the weakness in her abdominal wall will be mended.
After surgery, Uwimaana hopes to continue digging in the garden to look after her children and husband.
