The organization provided foodstuff to 200 families of people living with HIV/AIDS, lactating and expecting mothers, the elderly, and people with disabilities.
For the past seventeen years, Maxensia Takirambule Nakibuuka has been championing philanthropy. Through Lungujja Community Health Caring Organisation, she has been offering treatment and support to individuals, families, and communities affected by and infected with HIV /AIDS in Lubaga Division, Kampala City.
It didn’t come as surprise therefore that she chose to take action during the coronavirus-induced lockdown in Uganda. “When the pandemic broke out, the first thing we thought about was an activity to mitigate the impact on our clients grappling with HIV/AIDS,” she said. Quickly they thought of how to include the component of COVID-19 into their already existing project funded by Aids Healthcare Foundation (AHF). As was the norm during the lockdown, they channeled activities through the Lubaga Division COVID-19 Task Force.
“First, we conducted awareness programs on COVID-19, helped in the identification of cases, and referred them to the Lubaga Division COVID-19 Task Force,” she explained. They soon noticed an increase of people worrying that they might have caught the virus, so they also helped in testing using the infrared thermometers, and luckily, no positive case was found. They treated those with coronavirus-like symptoms and helped counsel the survivors discharged back into the community.
They also helped the community understand the essence of hygiene and constant sanitization while providing handwashing cans and masks to women in markets. Note though, that despite introducing a COVID-19 project, they continued to make sure their clients living with HIV/AIDS were not forgotten during the lockdown. “We identified HIV/AIDS clients and other chronically ill people who hadn’t been able to reach their respective health centres for refills and assisted pregnant mothers to access antenatal care during the lockdown,” she explains.
The organization provided foodstuff to 200 families of people living with HIV/AIDS, lactating and expecting mothers, the elderly, and people with disabilities. They identified people who had missed their appointments and those who had not been taking drugs were started back on the treatment. “We have picked up drugs for 24 clients in the last month, counseled more than 50 people with different social problems and we have mediated in many families with domestic violence,” she says.
Sadly, Nakibuuka reckons that there is so much need for psycho-social support for those affected by the lockdown. “Many people lost jobs and loved ones during the lockdown. We also have sick, unemployed people with no hope, we have children stuck at home and yet families have no food,” she said.
By Civsource Africa Team
