Categoria: Homenews

IRC19 a commitment year in Italy

Posted on by Redazione Cuamm

Eighty coloured spots, yellow, blue, green, red, spread throughout the map of Italy from north to south. As a “Risiko of good deeds done” in a year. This is the map depicting IRC19 project “Italian Response to COVID-19” funded by the US government on behalf of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). From training session on Covid-19 and global health, to food distribution to people in informal settlements in Apulia and to homeless people in La Spezia, to health facilities and nursing homes equipment, up to awareness raising projects on Covid-19. The activities offered and accomplished were numerous. Behind every single one: people, stories and deep motivations. Hence, you can run into Cristina, a nurse working in a health facility in the Marche region who states “I realized Africa is not that far away and we are all together under the same sky”, or Rosalba from Liguria who volunteers cooking and distributing food to those in needs every Saturday, she told us “I never questioned myself why. I do it, that is all. When you get to know people’s problems, you think less about yours. I feel useful and this makes me feel good”.

In Apulia we work alongside Aaditya, a cultural mediator who claims: “I really like this job. Together with Cuamm and thanks to its dedication to help the most vulnerable and invisible ones, we are making the difference to these people in the framework of “Italian Response to Covid-19”. While Mario, a long time doctor with Cuamm reaffirms: “Since my return to Italy, I have always been suffering from Africa bug. I am now trying to give back what I received from Africa. Basically I guess Africa taught me to pay more attention to the relationship with the patient and the desease”.

Starting from the real needs identified locally, meeting the needs of the population seeking the best solutions, adapting goals and modifying interventions in order to achieve tangible results; always acting with flexibility and adaptability to ensure that, once the emergency is over, the style and the way of working remains so that the lessons learned begin to bear lasting fruits. This is the style that has been characterizing Cuamm for over 70 years, in its dedication to vulnerable people and their right to health and, since last year, also in Italy where Cuamm is implementing this extraordinary project that is expected to be completed in January 2022.
Results achieved in a year are numerous: 207.645 meals distributed to people in ghettos of Apulia and to homeless people in La Spezia, Liguria; 9.504 people sensitized on Covid-19 thanks to the commitment of 27 volunteering groups supporting Cuamm in 11 regions; 5.421 students of health professions and interns trained on global health and 691 health workers taking part in the target-tailored courses on physical and mental wellbeing “Justin Time” and “Fit4Care”; 1.507 basic medical examinations to vulnerable people; 19 health facilities among which hospitals and nursing homes equipped for the management of Covid-19 from Trentino to Marche, through Lombardy, Veneto, Emilia Romagna and 10 agreements signed with ten Italian regions to launch new collaborations on these themes and needs. Moreover: support to women in need to make use of services provided in Fivizzano, Tuscany; support to the immigrant community of Pinerolo (Piedmont) to enhance their knowledge of risks linked to Covid-19; one vaccination centre inaugurated in Rubano, in the province of Padua.

The way awaiting us in the coming months is long and demanding, we will go through Italy from Naples to Milan passing through Parma, Brescia and wherever in between driven by a deep need written in Cuamm’s DNA: “Doing good deeds in a difficult way” in Africa and, in times of pandemic, in Italy too.

Doctors with Africa CUAMM Presented the 2020 Social Belance sheet

Posted on by Redazione Cuamm

The story of a year of dedicated work in Africa and Italy, in data, graphics, maps, photos, and balance sheet certification that bear witness to real, tangible commitment to help; this is the goal of the 2020 Social Balance Sheet that Doctors with Africa CUAMM presented today at its head offices in Padua. In this year CUAMM workers have had to face increasingly hard challenges, including because of Covid-19.

CUAMM’S Annual Report has evolved into a “social balance sheet” to bolster accountability and commitment to our stakeholders, including institutional, private, external, and internal stakeholders. This new approach is joined by the digital transposition of significant data as an additional step toward direct, transparent communication that is easy to access.

Andrea Borgato, Vice Director, presented the balance sheet in detail, saying, “The social balance sheet is a natural evolution of our annual report, in keeping with the obligations set by the reform of the Third Sector. It is a tool to tangibly measure and give a transparent account of the work we do in Africa and Italy. We went through this hard year of the pandemic, and we never stopped, never suspended our work. The balance sheet speaks to important numbers, with growing resources and activities, for a total commitment of €46,390,908, of which only 7% is for operating and communication costs.”

“Among the most important numbers about our work in Africa,” said Fabio Manenti, Head of Projects, I would emphasize this one: 1,512,112 children under 5 years of age were checked, 212,095 births attended, 18,657 patients given antiretroviral therapy, 8,211 health workers trained, 5,413 malnourished children treated, and 7,521 emergency transports provided.All this was done while withstanding the pressure from Covid-19 and the impact of indirect effects on health systems in terms of the decrease in access to services, which in some hospitals has been as much as 20%.”

A direct report from the field was given by Giorgia Gelfi, the current country representativein Mozambique, who was also long our representative in South Sudan: “2020 started with a big celebration in South Sudan for the opening of Rumbek Pediatrics. Right after that Covid came to Africa too with lockdowns and airport closures. We never stopped our work to care for and support the population, and we have taken all measures needed to cope as well as we could with Covid-19 which added to the already intense instability and fragility here. The situation in Mozambique is also very difficult with the ongoing emergency of displaced persons in Cabo Delgado in the north of the country. There were 600,000 internally displaced persons in 2020 out of a population of 1.2 million. CUAMM organized a humanitarian response including continuing its support of maternal and child health and fighting chronic diseases while trying to combat several cholera outbreaks.”

Andrea Atzori, Head of International Relations, talked about the new fronts of activity: “For 2020, we had an already intense working plan that we had to adapt to meet the huge challenge of Covid. We did this by organizing our response based on four key points: protecting healthcare workers; keeping facilities open and making them safe; raising awareness among communities; and forging partnerships at an international level to send materials by airlift, totaling approximately 14,000 kg of protective equipment for the first emergency response. And at a time that was so difficult for Italy as well, we also put into effect an extraordinary project here including supporting 14 Italian health structures in 11 different regions; supporting vulnerable groups in Puglia and La Spezia; and training Italian health workers on emergency management. This was all possible because of the “IRC19 / Italian Response to Covid-19” project, supported by USAID, the Cooperation Agency of the American Government.”

“We believe that trust is based on transparency and has to be earned by being accountable about what we have done and how, reporting clearly and openly the results we have achieved, our successes as well as limitations and failures. We believe deeply that international cooperation can be a truly important instrument of change and this social balance sheet is evidence of that. Looking at 2020, we have seen that solidarity happens everywhere, near and far; solidarity is global like health, and solidarity generates solidarity in a virtuous circle,” concluded Don Dante Carraro, director of Doctors with Africa CUAMM.

Nourishing the communities with knowledge and food

Posted on by Redazione Cuamm

Aleper Christine is one of the happy and proud mothers who have benefitted from the nutrition program being implemented by Doctors with Africa CUAMM in Moroto and Napak districts of Karamoja sub-region. The project “Nourishing with knowledge and food the communities of Moroto and Napak” was designed to be able to address the issues of behavior change and food security in the two districts.

Christine is a mother of six who lives in Lokilala village Nanduget Sub-County Moroto district with his family. When she was pregnant for her last born, she was encouraged by the Village Health Team to visit the facility for ante-natal check-ups.

“During these ante-natal clinic days I was given health education by health workers and CUAMM officers. I got information about eating a balanced diet using the locally available foods, early identification of any illnesses in the baby and sanitation and good hygiene – says Christine – It’s possibile to continue this health education during post-natal check ups”

This is what helped Christine understand that her child was malnourished. As soon as she realized she immediately took her to the facility. At the facility, the baby was diagnosed with severe acute malnutrition with edema and the health workers linked him to the Moroto RRH ITC for two weeks before he was transferred to OTC (outpatient therapeutic care) in the third week.

She embraced getting the RUFT (Ready to use therapeutic food) for her child but unfortunately for her and so many other mothers who were depending on the same, there was a nationwide stock out of these feeds from the ministry for a period of threemonths from September to November 2020.

However, all hope was not lost and with support from CUAMM and the health workers Christine benefitted from receiving the key health and nutrition messages during clinic days where they encouraged them to continue bringing their children for their weight to be monitored. They were encouraged to provide a variety of locally available foods like greens, beans, silver fish, eggs among others as a substitute for the RUFT.

“As a mother, I followed everything that I was advised to do by the health workers and went an extra mile of selling firewood which earned me some money to buy the foods that I did not have at home. I endeavored to feed my child on a balanced diet until he was assessed and declared cured in December 2020,” Christine said.

A great pain

Posted on by Redazione Cuamm

Dear all,

Abraham and Moses. Two important names that evoke an ancient history, a history of dialogue, of great dreams, stories of the journey and exodus from slavery to the promised land. And their dream may have been realized by Abraham Gulung and Moses Maker Manyual, our two South Sudanese colleagues who lost their lives last Monday while working with Cuamm. A dream of commitment and help to their people and their country. One a driver and the other a nutritionist, they travelled the length and breadth of the territory around Yirol to supervise the activities of the Nutrition intervention. They were reaching the most distant and challenging health units, in that last mile of the health system that we hold so dear.

During one such supervision, while travelling in a convoy with their armed escort and local authorities, they were ambushed and killed. We don’t know who did this heinous act, not even why. Maybe an inter-clan settling of scores.

Abraham Gulung was 32 years old and a native of Abuongkeu village. Driver. An indispensable figure in a territory such as South Sudan. It takes a lot of skill and the ability to find quick ways and solutions around obstacles. Drivers know how to navigate all kinds of roads, drive their cars through the quagmire, past the chasms of water that form when it rains a lot. Abraham was an only child. He leaves behind his wife, Nyan-pen Maker Dolbai and four children, two boys and two girls, Mabeny, Mapier, Nyakuoth and Iding, the latter born a few months ago. In February 2020 he had begun his commitment as a driver for Doctors with Africa Cuamm. “He was always ready to rush to your aid, he used to say ‘I’m here, brother, ready to help you!’ and he did it with a beautiful smile,” our people from Yirol remember.

Moses Maker Manyual was also very young, he was 33 years old. Native of Tonj, capital of the State of the same name that borders the Lakes State where we are present as Doctors with Africa Cuamm. The fifth of ten siblings, he had attended school up to grade four in his region, and then continued his studies in Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya, where he had moved because of South Sudan’s war of independence. There he had managed to complete his primary education and graduate as a nurse from Kenyatta International University until he earned a master’s degree as a nutritionist. He had been working with Cuamm since January 2020. He leaves 3 wives and 5 children, two boys and three girls between the ages of 11 and the youngest just over a year old. “He was an energetic man, you could tell that even by his quick way of walking. At 7:30 in the morning he was among the first to arrive at the office and sent ‘Good morning’ messages when many of us were still struggling to wake up,” some of Yirol’s colleagues recall -. His smile and laughter were his calling card, so connecting with him was very easy”.

I heard the news of Abraham and Moses’ death while on retreat with other priests. An acute sorrow and pain that I am entrusting to the Good Lord, just as I continue to entrust to Him the mission of Cuamm and the commitment of every single volunteer and operator working in Africa, especially in South Sudan.

We are shaken and we live with great concern this phase of transition to the peace that is being built with so much effort. That is why I will be joining our people in South Sudan next week to support them and meet with the local authorities. Our determination to be close to the South Sudanese people is strong, despite the many difficulties.

Thanks for being with us.

Don Dante

 

Abraham  Moses

COVID19 A new space for the “Casa Sant’Antonio Abate” in Alano di Piave

Posted on by Redazione Cuamm

Though it has been active since late April, due to Covid restrictions, today, June 17th, was the first chance to have a formal opening celebration. This new space inside the garden of the Casa Sant’Antonio Abate health and social center makes possible visits for the residents, now and in the future: a gazebo that was already there and used as a rest area has been equipped with temporary protections on the sides, which allows visits with the relatives of home’s residents even when the weather is poor.

This improvement was made possible by Doctors with Africa CUAMM and the “Italian Response to Covid19: Improving governance and community preparedness for a resilient society (IRC19)” project.

This pandemic has been especially hard on vulnerable groups like the elderly residents of care homes like those in Alano di Piave, affecting them more, not only physically affected by the disease but also psychologically from the forced separation from their loved ones. Restoring family relationships is essential for the psychological and physical wellbeing of the residents and the peace of mind of family members as well. The gazebo with the new equipment is now easy to access and comfortable even for frail elderly residents and two completely safe meeting stations could be made inside. Though it had been completed in March and April, when there was still a great need for safe meeting places, it could only be officially opened now after the recent reopening of Italy.

“On behalf of all of us at Casa Sant’Antonio, I would like to thank Doctors with Africa CUAMM for the new visitor space they have donated to us,” says Matteo Segafredo, president of the Casa Sant’Antonio Abate Foundation. “It has been essential during these months because it was place for our elderly residents and their children and relatives to visit, so long-awaited and desired by all. The numbers speak to its importance: 160 meetings with family members in the gazebo house in May and 88 meetings in the first half of June. CUAMM’s gift also looks to the future too and will be invaluable even when Covid-19 is just a memory. It gives Casa Sant’Antonio the advantage of an extra place for enjoying the pleasure of spending time together, including in evenings, since it is lighted, and even in poor weather, since it is protected. What’s more, since it is located in the garden facing the street and is a short way’s from the parish church, it lets our residents be part of the town’s life.

“This is the 17th health facility that we have helped as part of the IRC19 project for a prompt response to the Covid-19 emergency. Other care homes have also requested facilities to bring family and residents together in this difficult time. This shows how important it is in long-term residential care to make people and their loved ones at the center of focus,” says Andrea Atzori, Head of International Relations at Doctors with Africa CUAMM.

 

USAID (United States Agency for International Development), which funds IRC19, is the U.S. government’s leading development organization, active in more than 100 countries.

This press release was made possible thanks to the generous support of American citizens through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The content is the responsibility of Doctors with Africa CUAMM, recipient of the Fixed Amount Award (FAA) No. 7200AA20FA00013 and does not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States government.

Donate blood save lives

Posted on by Redazione Cuamm

In a country like Sierra Leone where maternal and child mortality is very high, transfusion medicine is essential. Blood becomes a real “drug” and it is fundamental. In fact, the distrust towards donation continues to be very strong and therefore the need to invest in raising awareness and advocacy is even stronger.

Due to the shortage of blood in the blood banks, health personnel often has to donate its own blood in emergencies, as happened last week to Steven Ngoma, Cuamm doctor in supervision in Bo district.

“We had an emergency of a pregnant woman with severe pre-eclampsia who absolutely needed a transfusion in order to get the surgery to survive. In the blood bank, however, there were no blood bags available, as the last donations dated back to December 2020 – says Steven -. Fortunately, my blood type was the same as her and therefore I donated mine, so that she could be taken in the surgical theater as soon as possible.”

Steven Ngoma’s story often repeats itself not only in Sierra Leone but in all the countries we work. On World Blood Donation Day, we want to draw attention to this simple gesture that can make a difference and save lives.

South Sudan Tragic ambush in Yirol

Posted on by Redazione Cuamm

On the 7th of June, Doctors with Africa CUAMM vehicles, travelling in convoy in the far west area of Yirol West County, in Lakes State, South Sudan, were ambushed by unknown people, for unclear reasons. As a result, two CUAMM staff tragically died.

Mr Moses Maker, 35 years old, was working with Doctors with Africa CUAMM as Nutritionist. Initially deployed to Cuibet County, he had then moved to the eastern side of Lakes State, being based in Yirol Town and in charge of organizing and supervising all activities related to the prevention and treatment of acute malnutrition. In particular, he was involved in the integration of nutrition services in the health care package at primary health care facilities and within communities in Yirol West and Yirol East Counties.

Mr Abraham Gulung, 31 years old, was working with Doctors with Africa CUAMM as Driver. He was supporting all activities implemented by CUAMM staff jointly with Yirol West Country Health Department, as supervision visits to primary health care facilities and drugs or nutrition supplies last mile distribution.

On that tragic day, they had travelled together to assess the work done in some facilities and to preposition some food supplies stock before raining season.

They were serving their people with passion, spirit of sacrifice and dedication.

We embrace the pain of the families of our dear colleagues. Their loss is a great tragedy that strikes the Cuamm family and our service in a country that we hope will soon find stability and a path of authentic and lasting peace.

Health and vaccines in Karamoja tackle the emergency

Posted on by Redazione Cuamm

Today, May 21, marks the kick-off of a Doctors with Africa CUAMM’s project in partnership with UNICEF, in all nine districts of the Karamoja region in Uganda. The intervention aims to strengthen the health system to ensure better access to and use of quality health services with a focus on nutrition, HIV, and emergency health management including Covid-19. The project is particularly dedicated to the most vulnerable groups: women, children and adolescents, and it is part of a larger pre-existing programme of collaboration between UNICEF and the Ugandan government. The projects has the following main objectives:

  • Enhancing the capacity building of district authorities to plan, coordinate, implement and monitor integrated services, along with strengthening the capacity of health facilities to provide these services;
  • Increasing the involvement of communities to promote changes in attitudes and behaviours, and increasing demand for and use of integrated services.
  • Improving the capacity of prevention, preparedness and response to emergencies related to natural disasters and public health. In particular, in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, UNICEF has provided additional funding to help Doctors with Africa Cuamm in implementing vaccination activities in the region in support of the Ugandan Ministry of Health, and in strengthening community awareness on Covid-19;

In Moroto, in the presence of the Ugandan Minister of Primary Health Care and the Country Representatives for CUAMM and UNICEF, an event is taking place to launch the project and the Community Engagement Strategy, the ministerial strategy for community engagement to ensure that people are adequately sensitised and actively contribute to prevent and control the spread of the virus. To achieve broader community engagement, special attention will be paid to raise awareness on this strategy among religious leaders.

Voices from the Front Line The World in the Time of COVID-19

Posted on by Redazione Cuamm

From the global North to the global South, from the world’s metropolises to its most rural areas, nowhere has been left unscathed by the COVID-19 pandemic, making all of us more aware than ever of our shared vulnerability, and underscoring the fact that health is a global issue that needs to be dealt with as such.

It’s precisely for this reason – to move beyond national boundaries and examine the pandemic from a global perspective – that Doctors with Africa CUAMM has put together a series of virtual meetings, “Voices from the Front Line: The World in the Time of COVID-19”, as part of our organization’s Italian Response to COVID-19 program, to be broadcast thanks to the support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

The five events will offer firsthand accounts by those who’ve been fighting on the front lines against COVID-19 in various parts of the world: health workers including doctors, nurses and researchers as well as others from public, private and non-governmental organizations.

What kind of strategies have been the most effective in terms of ensuring the continuity of health services, and where have they been implemented? Will the global South get the vaccines it needs? How has international development cooperation been impacted by COVID-19? How hard has the pandemic hit women, and how important will their contribution be vis-à-vis the reopening of society? These are just some of the questions we’ll be looking into as we attempt to identify good practices and models that can be shared on an international level.

The talks will be streamed live in English on Doctors with Africa CUAMM’s Facebook and YouTube channels starting 26 May 2021.

Event schedule

26 May 2021, 6 p.m.
Public and private accounts from Italy and Germany during the COVID-19 epidemic
Register for the event

June 2021, 6 p.m.
Advancing international development in times of crisis
Register for the event

July 2021, 6 p.m.
Last-mile vaccination: a challenge or an opportunity for African health systems?
Register for the event

September 2021, 6 p.m.
Empowered women for more resilient communities
Register for the event

September 2021, 6 p.m.
The challenges facing female health-care workers during the COVID-19 epidemic
Register for the event

As Agnes and Patrick the story of Sierra Leone

Posted on by Redazione Cuamm

Sierra Leone is one of the countries with the highest maternal mortality rate in the world, 1,120 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, along with infant mortality rate, 78.5 deaths per 1,000 live births (UNDP, 2019). Behind these staggering figures are people, stories of women and children who face daily challenges and still too often lose their lives due to poor health practices, inadequate and ill-equipped health facilities.

Agnes and Patrick live in Bo, Sierra Leone, and their story fortunately had a different ending. They got married in 2013 and their greatest wish was to have a baby. Shortly after the wedding Agnes became pregnant but lost the baby during the first months of pregnancy. After several attempts, Agnes became pregnant again and together with Patrick decided to travel to Freetown in the hope of finding better health services for mothers and children. Despite their efforts to seek better care, a complication arose in the seventh month of pregnancy due to inadequate antenatal care visits, forcing her to undergo an emergency surgery which the baby did not survive.

“It was really hard for us” says Patrick. “After some time, Agnes became pregnant again and we undertook a new arduous journey looking for better assistance than that we had received in Sierra Leone”. The first stop was Ghana, with the hope of obtaining a visa to go to Canada, where Patrick’s brother Mustapha lived. Then Nigeria, where the pregnancy was interrupted again in the third month. Finally, they returned to Sierra Leone where Agnes and Patrick finally started a new chapter thanks to their meeting with Dr. Tiru Nitsuh Addis, an Ethiopian gynaecologist working in Bo with Doctors with Africa CUAMM.

“Dr Tiru’s approach was completely different from all the experiences we had had with other doctors. He asked us to tell him our story, our medical background, he listened carefully to my wife, her fears and our concerns about this new pregnancy after so many difficulties and losses we had experienced”, says Patrick. “He did a procedure called “cerclage” at 16 weeks of pregnancy, he supported us and followed us step by step throughout the months of pregnancy”.

And so, on 7 May, Divine was born. “I am so overjoyed that I can’t even eat. We are so happy and grateful to the Lord, to Dr. Tiru and to the hospital’s maternity team for everything he has done for us”, Patrick adds. “Now, after 12 years of uninterrupted work, I can stop for a while to take care of my wife and my little girl. Over the years, Agnes and I have experienced first-hand what poor and inadequate health care” continues Patrick. “I have witnessed how women suffer, I have seen how this country is losing women and children”.

What Patrick and Agnes have experienced is not a unique or an exceptional case, but the story of many couples, many women forced to deal with a health system that is still too fragile, where there is a shortage of medical equipment, drugs and above all of qualified and motivated health personnel. “We absolutely must invest in education and training, not only here in Bo but throughout the whole country”.