Health

Kenia

As a result of increasing the activity of the Kimlea dispensary, medical care and disease prevention (HIV/AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, etc.) among the Kiambu population has been improved. This has especially benefitted maternal and infant care. This is an eminently rural region located in the Central province. From this dispensary, the entire population of the Tigoni region (some 54,000 people) is cared for, with women and children as a priority. All the women work in the fields. The salary they receive barely allows them to survive, which explains why they cannot pay for travel expenses and care for any type of medical treatment. 47,825 people received direct benefit from medical attention, disease prevention and improved access to essential medications in the 24 months that the project lasted. Two fronts were focused on: palliative and preventative care. Essential medications were distributed, though antiretroviral drugs deserve special attention. In the preventative direction, vaccination campaigns; blood analysis for AIDS detection to inform carriers and prevent contagion; and nutritional and hygienic courses were included. In addition, a psychological counseling department for HIV carriers was begun. This current project included improving the equipment of the dispensary to avoid any danger of contagion from not following all the hygienic measures due to the increased volume of people, as well as providing necessary equipment for diagnosis and treatment.