One year old Moserray was recently brought to Mercy Hospital recently by his extremely concerned mother and father. The Mercy staff quickly observed that Moserray was extremely malnourished and admitted for evaluation and treatment. In addition to malnutrition, Moserray was diagnosed with malaria.  He had a high fever and difficulty breathing. 

The staff treated Moserray for malaria and referred him to the Government Hospital, where he will receive more intensive care for the malnutrition than Mercy can provide. The government hospital often runs out of critical medicines, so Mercy will ensure the family has everything their child needs to heal. 

The Child Rescue Centre has expanded its vision to serve children and families who live in the villages of Pujehun and Manguama.

Last month, children from these two villages were enrolled in the Child Support Program so they can begin receiving support for their education. Both underdeveloped and politically marginalized, these small villages suffer from extreme poverty, lack of services and inaccessibility.

Manguama is one of the villages served by Mercy Hospital outreach.

CRC Director Mohamed Nabieu spoke to the new vision to expand to the villages.  “We are not only to focus on our comfortable zones, but if we want to make meaningful impact, we have to be ready to reach out to the unreached, speak out for the voiceless and help the underprivileged,” he said.  

Over several days in September the CRC team visited the newly established operational areas to distribute school supplies. “The children are all set and ready for the new school year,” CRC Case Manager Victor Kanu reported. The CRC staff counseled the parents to support their children’s education by encouraging them to study and take good care of their school supplies.  

If you would like to sponsor one of the children from the new village initiative, please click on the link below.

Ten-month-old Isata Sandy, a twin, was referred to Mercy Hospital by the outreach team for an acute respiratory infection.  Isata and her twin sister had recently graduated from the nutrition program when they reached a healthy weight. After treatment at the hospital, Isata made a full recovery.

Her mother, Isata Sandy, expressed her thanks for Mercy's care of her baby.  “I am very grateful for Mercy Hospital for treating my child. Mercy Hospital nurses are very nice and treated us very well.”

Twenty-three students who sat the 2018 West African Senior School Certificate Examination WASSCE have been taking computer classes three times a week at the CRC while awaiting their test results. The classes, led by CRC System Administrator Johnanese Baun are helping the students acquire basic computer knowledge.  CRC students mostly do not have electricity at home, let alone access to computers.  "It has been a wonderful moment to see the students very happy for the opportunity given to them," Johanese says.  "The attendance is good!"

In commemoration of World Pharmacy Day, please welcome the newest member of the Mercy Hospital family, Samuel Sankoh, who is a trained and qualified pharmacy technician.  Samuel began working at Mercy at the beginning of September.  He is excited about the opportunity to contribute to Mercy Hospital’s mission to provide the community with excellent and compassionate medical care.

The work of pharmacists is vital in Sierra Leone, Samuel says.  “Pharmacists are really rare in Sierra Leone. We really do not have enough. I would encourage people to consider studying to be a pharmacist or encouraging their children to become one. They are really important. Pharmacists make sure that patients are receiving the correct medications. They have knowledge about how to prevent resistance to drugs, especially antibiotics.”

On World Pharmacy Day, let's appreciate those who have chosen this important work.