Case Study observed, experienced and narrated by: Florence Mwende Muthoka...

This is a case of a once depressed mother of 3.  Ngure is 4 years; Kinyanjui is 2.5 years and Baby Chege.  Ngure and Kinyanjui are malnourished at the time of my first visit.  They have completed immunization, Ngure is quiet and Kinyanjui is very jolly and playful.  One could easily mistake Kinyanjui for a healthy child but he is not.  He has stretched skin due to malnourishment. Balanced diet is hard to come by for the family.  They all feed on ugali and cabbage.  Their house is a small room without ventilation.

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The first time I visited Mary, I advised her to go the antenatal clinic because she was expectant, and to take the children with her for growth monitoring and vitamin supplements.  I gave her porridge supplement.  The children, even though malnourished are securely attached.

The next time I visited she had delivered at home.  The Community Health Worker got vitamin A from Assissi dispensary and gave the children. I advised her to take the baby to the clinic after recuperation for BCG to be administered.  I called the community worker to follow up on her; she had not taken the child to hospital citing lack of bus fare.  The next week when I visited her, I explained to her the importance of immunization, and that the child was a risk of contracting tuberculosis.

The next time I visited, the child had been immunized.  The two boys were playing.  I observed tremendous improvement in the boys.  The boys were now feeding on ugali and sukuma wiki after our advice; she had started giving the children fresh orange juice.
There was joy in the family.  Every time I visited this family I gave supplements for the children and liquid soap.  I had talked to her about the importance of clean water and environment sanitation.  A healthy environment promotes not only the growth of children, but also prevents most infections considering that children use their hands to touch everything.  Water scarcity leads to problems of cleanliness, which result into breeding of diseases and this is dangerous to the children.

I noticed a positive change in this family.  It is a joy when you begin with a person when they are so low and you witness them coming up to the point of the husband participating in the affairs of the children.  It takes God.

Case Study 1 |  Case Study 3

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