Kisan Parja
Like any mother, Nisha Parja was very worried when her only child, a 3-year old boy named Kisan, developed a bad fever, but she knew that she would find help from LEPRA Health in Action.
Nisha told us “We live a long way from the LEPRA clinic, but I can’t afford to take my son anywhere else because we do not have the money. We travelled from our home all through the night to get here. I knew about this clinic because two years ago I benefited from LEPRA’s help when I developed TB. They diagnosed the problem, gave me treatment, and cured me, and all for no money. My son has had a bad fever for too long now, so I had no option but to make the journey here to the Outpatients Department. The doctors suspect it to be malaria and want to take tests.” She paused, holding her child tightly against her “He’s our only child, and I wouldn’t know what to do if we lost him.”
Kisan was immediately put on treatment, and will be cured, but there is more work to do. LEPRA staff advised Nisha in the use of mosquito nets, and ways to prevent mosquitoes breeding.
Malaria is responsible for 15-25% of all deaths of children under the age of five in India (around 800,000), which makes this one of the major causes of infant and juvenile mortality.
Mosquito nets are readily available and cheap, and can save the life of a child. With your help we will be able to provide mosquito nets for all vulnerable children in LEPRA projects.
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