ICROSS Newsletter
update on ICROSS Projects
info@icrossinternational.org
August 30 2009
Drought spreading
ICROSS field teams are reaching communities across Maasailand which is today facing an acute situation of worsening drought. With severe water shortages across Sub Saharan Africa in this area alone over 60% of livestock has been lost. Increasing numbers of mothers and children have become malnourished with over half of young mothers suffering from anemia in our areas. ICROSS has extended clinical services through our network of dispensaries and clinics – for US$5 er day who can feed a family with high calorie nutritionally balanced food . Together with the Ministry of Health we have increased our support to enable communities in drought stricken areas. Thanks to your support, and through the partnership efforts of New World International we have been able to help thousands of children to receive supplementary feeding.
Building better health care.
As part of our expansion we have engaged additional nursing personnel to help manage the growing numbers of pregnant and breast feeding mothers who today are surviving on a limited daily diet. With your help we have started to build maternal child health care units in all our clinics. This will be a slow process each Maternal unit will cost approximately £ 24,000. However once established these units will provide professional and safe delivery for newborns and their mothers.
We are already building new clinics to serve communities who are presently without health services. Our new public health programme at Ilkilorit is continuing. The clinic is being supported by Gerry Coogan. This project should be completed by the end of the year. Our community health programme is led by J OleNkulia. Saruni Ole Lengeny, Asst Country Director who today said “ The community health teams and womens groups are already active in the area which is facing real hunger, serious water shortage and loss of animals. The challenges over the next few years are going to be a real struggle for the very poor and weak, that’s why we are here.” Saruni has worked with ICROSS for 26 years and has extensive experience working with communities facing famine. “If possible we need to implement a child survival programme here as soon as we can.”.
Our rickets control project in Sinkiraine is making a real difference. Instigated by Professor Ronan Conroy , the supplimentation programme is already improving the lives of over a hundred children .
Preventing disease
An important part of fighting water borne diseases is the solar disinfection of contaminated drinking water. Over a billion people in poor countries have no access to safe water (Talk about Kenya not globally) . Since 1994 we have been working on the solar disinfection of water with the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. Our work has become our most significant contribution to International health . This month Dr Kevin McGuigan the head of the SODIS International Collaboration team visited all our SODIS programmes. This programme protects the drinking water for over 6,000 people at risk of diarrhoeal infections and is expanding in its scope and impact.
As part of the Malaria control project we have distributed over 400 mosquito nets in August alone. This project launched at the start of the year has protected over 3,500 people from getting malaria. Each net costs £3 excellent. With your help we hope to provide a further thousand nets to mothers and children.
Together with the Ministry of Health we have completed a District wide Trachoma treatment programme. Trachoma is the worlds leading cause of preventable blindness, the Maasai have one of the highest rates of trachoma in the World . ICROSS treated hundreds of cases throughout the district . In partnership with AMREF ( Flying Doctors ) and the Ministry of Health , ICROSS mobile units covered remote areas including those areas which experience high levels of blindness.
HIV AIDS Programme
Our terminal care programme for people suffering from AIDS and HIV illnesses continues in three districts. Despite real limitations our community based network is supporting hundreds of families crippled by the stigma of AIDS , TB and living in extreme poverty. We supply medical, home based care and support and effective referral support for these patients.
Our projects targeting the most vulnerable - orphans continue to assist children in Kissi, Bondo, Nakuru and other areas where children are struggling without their families. These children live on less that £ 1 a day and we need your help. Together with our partners and community groups across Kenya we are increasing our support to AIDS orphans and vulnerable children in the most hard to reach corners of the country.
Evaluating what we do
An important part of our work is learning and listening. With our research partners we are consistently measuring the impact of what we do and how it changes peoples lives. Our research studies are published in peer review medical and scientific journals and we share the results internationally at conferences and seminars. As part of improving our health programmes we are launching a disease mapping project in January 2010.
In order to ensure accountability and transparency we constantly review our programmes, our management structure and financial systems, both through internal and external assessments , audits and reviews. Our external audits are available to donors on request.
As part of improving our help lines, information and campaigns we have recently restructured our web sites. You can find out more about the work of ICROSS International on www.icrossinternational.org and www.icrosskenya.com or email us at info@icrossinternational.org
How to help
We need your help, you can donate on line through our partner charity NWI UK , www.newworldinternational.org or contact us for details.
You can help by sharing our links with your friends or sharing our books and publications . Our international exhibitions are at www.africa-awakes.com
Saruni OleLengeny
Asst Country Director
ICROSS
"A man sees in the world what he carries in his heart."
- J.W. Goether, from "Faust"
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Sunday, August 30, 2009
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