A non-profit organization based in Canada is fighting to improve health care in Malawi, providing education, eye treatments and cancer screenings to individuals in remote areas.
In order to help hundreds of women and children in the East African country every year, charitable organization Project Malawi CKY’s Orphans is offering programs for eyesight care in schools and bringing mobile breast and cervical cancer clinics to rural areas of the country.
As explained by the project’s Director of Outreach Programs Yolanda Cornwall, the initiative began in 2016, offering aid, clothing and educational materials to orphans in the area.
But when Cornwall heard from local doctors that local women were dying from curable forms of cervical and breast cancer, she knew she had to do something about it.
“I said, ‘No, nobody should be dying from curable cancer.’ There’s something that we can do. And [this was] due to the lack of education and [the fact] that women in that society are not held at a higher standard. So I said, ‘We have to do [what] we can,’” she told Now Toronto.
The organization then started bringing mobile breast and cervical cancer clinics into the community, providing screenings for the disease and helping affected women in accessing procedures to remove and treat tumours.
According to the director, the treacherous conditions of rural areas in the country make it extremely difficult for health clinics to access it or for locals to commute to hospitals.
“It’s so far that a lot of them walk for miles and miles if they can’t afford the transportation. And sometimes when they get there, by the time they get there, the clinic is closed,” she said.
“Malawi is one of the poorest countries, and to go and get this surgery for some of them is unachievable, and if we’re not there to help and provide that, it won’t get done. They will just live with the cancer and not get it removed.”
PROVIDING MORE THAN JUST HEALTH CARE
More than providing health-care services, the organization also works to educate local women and girls about their bodies, given that many often contract sexually transmissible diseases or certain types of cancer due to lack of awareness about their bodies.
Since starting the project, Cornwall says they have detected less cases of cervical cancer among local women, as the organization makes sure to check in frequently and follow up with more screenings.
“[In] the community, the women actually go and start talking to each other, ‘Hey, I went and did this.’ And that’s how the education and the word gets around, and they understand and are able to explain to their friends, to their daughters. It’s really great,” she said.
In addition to female health care, the organization has also launched a medical eye clinic program, which aims to provide eye sight care, especially for school kids.
According to Cornwall, many school kids in Malawi live with chronic eye conditions or difficulties to see, as they don’t have access to eye screening equipment or glasses.
In light of this problem, the project is now bringing free eye checkups into local schools, as well as cataract treatment and glasses for those who need it.
The organization is also educating youth about curable eyesight conditions, preventing them from dropping out of school for not being able to see.
“There was a high percentage [of kids dropping out of school] because they can’t see the school board, the chalkboard. They don’t go to class because they can’t see,” she said.
Cornwall says that hundreds of adults who hear about the projects also turn to the clinic for help accessing screenings, treatments, and medicine.
CHARITY NOW ACCEPTING DONATIONS
Project Malawi is currently accepting donations to continue with its initiatives and acquire new equipment.
According to Cornwall, given the high demand and difficult access, the organization has often had to improvise with equipment, such as converting tables into beds.
“They are lacking the circulation for air, sometimes. Sometimes there’s no electricity. So, a lot of our remote work is done by our cell phone lights to actually do the cervical cancer screening if we don’t have a lamp or a flashlight, whatever we can use. And even getting our medical supplies there is sometimes difficulty,” she said.
The director explains that the organization is currently raising funds to acquire new mobile eye screening equipment, which costs around $8,600.
“We have big goals for the eye clinic, because we would like to get more of the machinery we can [use]… we’re raising funds to try to get that, and also raising funds to get the eye drops that are needed for aftercare surgery. And it’s an ongoing battle. It’s very hard to find,” she added.
Project Malawi is also looking into expanding its services to include dentistry and a general physician that can travel to the area.
The charity currently accepts monetary donations and used equipment. Donations can be given through the project’s profile on Charity Helps or via email through projectmalawi101@gmail.com.
“This is something that we do without getting paid. We receive no money, and this is how we spend our vacations from work. Is by going to Malawi to give back to the country of Malawi,” Cornwall added.
