Nadim Lalani, the National Council member for Outreach spoke of his time at the Lira weekend, saying, “The experience was a little different to volunteering within the Jamat. We had the opportunity to make a difference and work with people from completely different backgrounds and cultures. Not only volunteers but Doctors, Donors from Optometry and Pharmaceutical field also travelled over 14 hours by road to hold this worthy Health Camp. The School premises were used as a base for the Health Camp, where children, parents, guardians and others from the school community had their vitals checked; were seen by a doctor and free medication and vitamins were prescribed. All those who were involved had the same goal of wanting to support and give much needed resources to this local community.”
Gulzar Hirani, the Aga Khan Health Board Chair said “We do a similar annual Health Camp in Central Kampala with the Kibuli community, which is lot busier but this time we travelled to Lira, in Northern Uganda. These camps are good for screening non-communicable diseases because when these are not arrested early, the victims slip into complications and yet with timely intervention- these diseases can be controlled. The Health camp experience is meaningful and enjoyable and seeing their smiles and happiness after having free checkup gives the volunteers a very good feeling. Some of the volunteers have served for a long time and this time one volunteer even brought his 18 year old along , as he wanted his son to see what Mawlana Hazar Imam means when he speaks about the importance of contributing towards the community with whom we live.”
The one-day free health camp held on Saturday, 30 November 2019 was much needed and impactful. The volunteers, donors and Mukhisaheb and Kamadiasaheb of Lira Jamat not only coordinated the Lira logistics but also joined in and helped.
The well attended health camp was organised specifically for the St. Gracious Nursery and Primary school and its community and this joint collaboration demonstrated how health issues can be communicated to the community in an interesting way.
The camp started early in the morning and while registrations were being done, there was a sensitisation on the importance of early childhood education, in order to create awareness of this critical initiative. This session was conducted with the assistance of the Aga Khan Foundation's Madrasa Early Childhood Program. Aseru Sarah from the Madrasa programme said, “this is an amazing initiative by the Ismaili Muslim community and its volunteers and donors and I am happy to be part of it.” She added that “we have today spoken to this local community about the importance of brain development in the early years of life and parents were urged to ensure they interact with their children from pre-natal stage and immediately after birth they should continue to educate their children, even by using local resources and the God given gifts to nurture the children intellectually, socially and spiritually.”
The school where the camp was held is centrally located in the heart of Lira, and despite heavy rain on the day, as many as 400 children, parents and guardians benefited from the health camp.
There was also an opportunity for the school community to have vision testing by one of the donor company present at the camp. Mohsin Lalani an Optometrist from Millennium Optics Limited commented that, “We screened about 120 children today and among the common problems found today at the camp were photo sensitivity, allergies and myopia amongst children. We feel it is important for the children to be screened at an early age so that the challenges are addressed and vision is not compromised. As Millennium Optics we are grateful to be part of this good work and this type of work also reinforces our company motto of “Vision for Better Life”.
The other Donors who generously partnered with the Health Camp included Gittoes Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Astra Pharma (U) Ltd, and Arman Pharmacy (U) Ltd, based in Lira. The other generous partners included Leo Biscuits who distributed biscuits to the children; bread and water was also generously gifted.
The health camp was a huge success with overwhelming response from the local community. Majority of the people who attended the camp were suffering from infections, acidity and other various common but neglected problems such as diarrhoea, skin infections and allergies.
One of the parents, Dennis Okello Ayini a 35-year-old father of 3 children who attended the camp commented that, “this kindness is very welcomed and helps parents like us manage our daily expenses and we appreciate the free medical attention, medicines, the learning given on benefits of early childhood education and the refreshments. My children have been suffering from itchy red eyes and today we have received treatment thanks to the Camp.”
Minaz Jamal, the President of the Ismaili National Council of Uganda said, “As Ismaili community it is important for us to get out of our comfort zone and to engage with the local communities in remote areas of Uganda and make a real difference to lives. The aim of today’s one-day camp was not just to provide health and eye services but to create an environment where the whole school community gets sensitised about health and other issues. Through such camps and with the assistance of our volunteers and our supportive donors, we are able to conduct this type of support and encourage civic society engagement which are key objectives of our community.”
