South Sudan's English Daily Newspaper
"We Dare where others fear"
By Denis Ejulu
Mary Keji, a resident of the Nakituen Korok South area of Rajaf payam, located 7 km West of Juba, had been stuck for a month with her four-year-old sick child due to the lack of a nearby health facility in her locality.
Her child Agnes Poni, has been suffering from a combination of Gastritis, flu and skin rash since March, but without getting proper medical treatment until the opportunity arose during the visit of the 11th batch of the Chinese medical team to her village.
Keji told The Dawn that she previously had sought treatment from several clinics in Juba including Al Saba Children hospital but the condition of her child failed to improve.
“I moved with my child to several clinics but the condition of the child did not improve. I am happy to have got assistance from the Chinese doctors, I have spent a lot of money visiting private clinics,” Keji said after she got free medicine for her ailing child.
The Chinese medics gave her medicine which could last for two weeks.
“Private clinics are very expensive but the Chinese doctors are treating people here for free,” Keji said.
Gastritis is inflammation (irritation) of the stomach lining. This may be caused by many factors including infection, alcohol, particular medications and some allergic and immune conditions.
The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) headquarters is hosted on the community land in Nakituen Korok South along the Juba-Yei road.
The medical camp was initiated by the Chinese peacekeepers that often patrol the community in Nakituen Korok South.
Jane Yange, 69, who has suffered from Gastritis for 7 years, had also failed to get proper medication for her condition due to not only the lack of money but also the absence of a health facility in her locality.
“Whenever I could eat food, I develop diarrhea and stomach inflammation,” she said.
Yange was able to get free antibiotics and other medicine for her condition from the Chinese doctors.
The doctors on further examining her also found she had Syphilis and advised her to visit Juba Teaching Hospital where they are based for further treatment.
Josephine Alonyo,27, whose three- year -old child suffers from umbilical hernia, was among several mothers whom the doctors upon examining their children with umbilical hernia were advised on how to take proper care of the children with such condition.
Alonyo said her child has been experiencing severe abdominal pain for now one year, which has made her restless.
The Chinese doctors advised her to lie the child down and push the abdomen inside for a few minutes, whenever the abdominal pain persists, adding this type of hernia may heal by itself as the baby grows.
Umbilical hernias, which usually only appear in babies, occur because the abdominal wall just behind the naval becomes damaged.
Gabriel Ladu, community secretary of Nakituen Korok South commended both the Chinese peacekeepers and the medical team for providing in-kind medical services to the community.
“The Chinese peacekeepers are the ones who came up with this idea of bringing Chinese doctors to conduct medical camp here, we were not aware of the presence of the Chinese medical team in the country,” Ladu said.
“We are the host community to the UNMISS headquarters and the Chinese peacekeepers are providing security to the community around the UN headquarters,” he added.
Ladu said that the vital medical services provided to the community will improve the lives of the people.
He requested the Chinese medical team to conduct another medical outreach in the area since they lack health facilities in their community.
“We don’t have any medical facility around here, we have to travel all the way to Juba and sometime the distance is very long,” Ladu said.
