1-March-2008.
Bruce Lothrop.
Losinoni is a small Massae village on the slopes of Mt Meru. There is a primary school, a church, and a few bomas. The villagers in Losinoni have a terrible problem: Fluorosis. Fluorosis is a conditions that occurs when the mineral fluoride exists in high concentrations in drinking water. As children grow, bones are built with too much fluoride, and not enough calcium. The symptoms are orange staining of the teeth, and weakened bones. The leg bones of a child suffering from fluourosis bend under his weight. At first they experience pain when the run or jump. Then when they walk. In advanced stages of fluosis, a child’s knees are turned in, his feet are turned out, and his lower legs are visibly bent. He can walk only with great difficulty, and he is in constant pain.
The orthopedic team at Selian hospital can correct the bent bones and relieve the suffering of a child with fluosis for about $350.00, including surgery and physical therapy, and three month of convalescent care (you read that correctly: $350 US dollars). Individuals can be healed, but unless problem of the water supply is solved, the child, will re-enter the cycle of illness, and others will also get sick. The resolution to this problem is a public health issue, not just a medical issue. A rotary club in St. Louis funded a new water system or Losinoni. The new water system draws water from a reservoir six kilometers up Mt. Meru, and stores it in a tank near the village. The water from the mountain is lower in fluoride, and safe for the children to drink.
On Wednesday, a team from Salian visited Losinoni to examine the children for signs of fluorosis. This is part of a routine program to examine children at several villages where they are at risk. Children who will benefit from surgery can be identified. The families are then encouraged to bring the child to Salian. Some families find the expense difficult, although, in Maasae culture, it is the responsibility of the extended family to pay for medical care. Some families see a sick child as a sign of weakness and are resistant to acknowledge the issue by accepting medical care.
The outreach team that day consisted of a Maasae doctor, a social worker, and two therapists. The social worker and therapists were all graduates of Maasae Lutheran Girls Secondary School. Part of the Bethel team accompanied the orthopedic team, as well as two medical students from the University of Minnesota who were visiting Salean.
When we arrived at the village, we were escorted to the Head of the Primary School’s office. This was a small concrete room with a desk, a few chairs and just enough room to fit our group. The Head of School began by welcoming us, and spending 10 minutes listing all the supplies that the government had promised him, such as desk, chairs, black boards and books. In each case, he carefully explained the number of items he should have, the number he did have, and, lest we get lost in the math, the shortage. The message was clear: He would like a significant donation to the school.
Having dispensed with the preliminaries, our doctor and therapists proceeded to examine several children. The first few children examined showed significant signs of fluorosis, some advanced enough to be visible to untrained eyes like my own. The Maasae doctor, and our own Dr. Jack McAllister began to suspect something was not right. They asked the Head of School about the water supply. At first the Head of School hedged, but when pressed admitted that the new water system was not in service. He said that the intake had been clogged two weeks ago in heavy rains. No one had yet cleared the intake. The village was had reverted to the contaminated water supply. Our doctors asked to see the village chairman, the government leader in the village. The chairman was produced. Unfortunately he spoke only Maa, and members of our group spoke only Kiswahili and English. With the Head of School translating, the Chairman reported that he planned to have the water supply fixed the next day. He had no answer for why the problem had not be addressed promptly, despite the risk to the children of the village.
The examinations continued. We saw about eight children who were afflicted. A particularly disturbing case was a twelve-year-old child. He had visible bowing in his legs, and significant scars from where he had had an operation to repair the effects of fluorosis in 2000. Because the village was still using a contaminated water supply, the boy would need another operation.
At the conclusion of our meeting, guest and dignitaries (the Head of School and chairman) were presented with bottle water and Coca-Cola. It was difficult to accept the gift graciously, and not run outside, and hand the water to the children, but we had been carefully instructed to accept all gifts graciously. A few bottles of water would not save any of the kids in the long run, but still the symbolism was a bit painful.
After the meeting, the women of the village put on a special crafts market for us. We spent generously, and bargained poorly.
We then toured the non-functional water tank. This, it turned out was a pitch from the Chairman and Head of School for support for a second water tank for the school, and a larger pipe. Neither of these projects would address the primary problem: The local leadership was not prioritizing safe drinking water for the village. We returned from Losinoni discouraged.
The story of our day in Losinoni illustrates some of the problems that we encounter as we try to support our brothers in sisters who live in poverty. We must help in anyway we can, because the circumstance are often so dire. At the same time, as much as we would like to, we cannot solve problems for others. We need to find partners in places like Losinoni who can take responsibility to insure that good works carry on after we return home. We support people who are capable, and help them achieve what needs to be done. We need to find the trees that bear fruit, and help sustain them. We must also help plant and new trees, and help the to grow to be strong and fruitful. We help to plant trees and help them grow until there is an orchard the bears all the fruit the world needs.
We have such partners at Salian, and at MLGSS. We need to support them, and help them grow. We need to find new people and institutions that can have a positive impact, and we need help them clear the obstacles in their paths, so that they can reach their full potential.
Forgive me if my writing is emotional tonight, but as my new friend Marv tells me, “Africa is an emotional place”
Bruce.
Bruce Lothrop.
Losinoni is a small Massae village on the slopes of Mt Meru. There is a primary school, a church, and a few bomas. The villagers in Losinoni have a terrible problem: Fluorosis. Fluorosis is a conditions that occurs when the mineral fluoride exists in high concentrations in drinking water. As children grow, bones are built with too much fluoride, and not enough calcium. The symptoms are orange staining of the teeth, and weakened bones. The leg bones of a child suffering from fluourosis bend under his weight. At first they experience pain when the run or jump. Then when they walk. In advanced stages of fluosis, a child’s knees are turned in, his feet are turned out, and his lower legs are visibly bent. He can walk only with great difficulty, and he is in constant pain.
The orthopedic team at Selian hospital can correct the bent bones and relieve the suffering of a child with fluosis for about $350.00, including surgery and physical therapy, and three month of convalescent care (you read that correctly: $350 US dollars). Individuals can be healed, but unless problem of the water supply is solved, the child, will re-enter the cycle of illness, and others will also get sick. The resolution to this problem is a public health issue, not just a medical issue. A rotary club in St. Louis funded a new water system or Losinoni. The new water system draws water from a reservoir six kilometers up Mt. Meru, and stores it in a tank near the village. The water from the mountain is lower in fluoride, and safe for the children to drink.
On Wednesday, a team from Salian visited Losinoni to examine the children for signs of fluorosis. This is part of a routine program to examine children at several villages where they are at risk. Children who will benefit from surgery can be identified. The families are then encouraged to bring the child to Salian. Some families find the expense difficult, although, in Maasae culture, it is the responsibility of the extended family to pay for medical care. Some families see a sick child as a sign of weakness and are resistant to acknowledge the issue by accepting medical care.
The outreach team that day consisted of a Maasae doctor, a social worker, and two therapists. The social worker and therapists were all graduates of Maasae Lutheran Girls Secondary School. Part of the Bethel team accompanied the orthopedic team, as well as two medical students from the University of Minnesota who were visiting Salean.
When we arrived at the village, we were escorted to the Head of the Primary School’s office. This was a small concrete room with a desk, a few chairs and just enough room to fit our group. The Head of School began by welcoming us, and spending 10 minutes listing all the supplies that the government had promised him, such as desk, chairs, black boards and books. In each case, he carefully explained the number of items he should have, the number he did have, and, lest we get lost in the math, the shortage. The message was clear: He would like a significant donation to the school.
Having dispensed with the preliminaries, our doctor and therapists proceeded to examine several children. The first few children examined showed significant signs of fluorosis, some advanced enough to be visible to untrained eyes like my own. The Maasae doctor, and our own Dr. Jack McAllister began to suspect something was not right. They asked the Head of School about the water supply. At first the Head of School hedged, but when pressed admitted that the new water system was not in service. He said that the intake had been clogged two weeks ago in heavy rains. No one had yet cleared the intake. The village was had reverted to the contaminated water supply. Our doctors asked to see the village chairman, the government leader in the village. The chairman was produced. Unfortunately he spoke only Maa, and members of our group spoke only Kiswahili and English. With the Head of School translating, the Chairman reported that he planned to have the water supply fixed the next day. He had no answer for why the problem had not be addressed promptly, despite the risk to the children of the village.
The examinations continued. We saw about eight children who were afflicted. A particularly disturbing case was a twelve-year-old child. He had visible bowing in his legs, and significant scars from where he had had an operation to repair the effects of fluorosis in 2000. Because the village was still using a contaminated water supply, the boy would need another operation.
At the conclusion of our meeting, guest and dignitaries (the Head of School and chairman) were presented with bottle water and Coca-Cola. It was difficult to accept the gift graciously, and not run outside, and hand the water to the children, but we had been carefully instructed to accept all gifts graciously. A few bottles of water would not save any of the kids in the long run, but still the symbolism was a bit painful.
After the meeting, the women of the village put on a special crafts market for us. We spent generously, and bargained poorly.
We then toured the non-functional water tank. This, it turned out was a pitch from the Chairman and Head of School for support for a second water tank for the school, and a larger pipe. Neither of these projects would address the primary problem: The local leadership was not prioritizing safe drinking water for the village. We returned from Losinoni discouraged.
The story of our day in Losinoni illustrates some of the problems that we encounter as we try to support our brothers in sisters who live in poverty. We must help in anyway we can, because the circumstance are often so dire. At the same time, as much as we would like to, we cannot solve problems for others. We need to find partners in places like Losinoni who can take responsibility to insure that good works carry on after we return home. We support people who are capable, and help them achieve what needs to be done. We need to find the trees that bear fruit, and help sustain them. We must also help plant and new trees, and help the to grow to be strong and fruitful. We help to plant trees and help them grow until there is an orchard the bears all the fruit the world needs.
We have such partners at Salian, and at MLGSS. We need to support them, and help them grow. We need to find new people and institutions that can have a positive impact, and we need help them clear the obstacles in their paths, so that they can reach their full potential.
Forgive me if my writing is emotional tonight, but as my new friend Marv tells me, “Africa is an emotional place”
Bruce.
A case of fluorosis in Losinoni
