Lepra News Autumn 2020

Autumn 2020

LepraNews

lepra.org.uk

In this issue History Life in a colony An interview with Victoria Hislop Our impact 2019-2020 Patron: Her Royal Highness Her Majesty The Queen Vice President: His Royal Highness The Duke of Gloucester KG GCVO

How COVID-19 is affecting leprosy Front cover image by Tom Bradley

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IN THIS ISSUE

3 4-5 6-10 11 12

History - Life in a colony Isaac and Elfrida’s story Interview with Victoria Hislop Annual Report and Accounts Fundraising and events

Yadari’s story

Leprosy Review

The journal started in 1928 as an information booklet, Leprosy Notes, for the British Empire Leprosy Relief Association (BELRA). The title of Leprosy Review was first used in 1930, and it has been published quarterly ever since, without interruption, and is now the only printed, peer-reviewed English language leprosy journal. Distribution covers 113 countries mainly in leprosy endemic areas.

Topics published include research into the medical, physical and social aspects of leprosy and information relevant to leprosy control.

Original research, short reports, case studies and reviews are published.

The main aim of the journal contributes to a better understanding of leprosy and its control. Original papers on all aspects of leprosy, including research, are accepted. In addition, Leprosy Review seeks to publish information of educational value which is of direct benefit to the control of leprosy under field conditions and hence to the individual patient. The journal aims to interpret what is being done in other disciplines, particularly for field workers. The website, leprosyreview.org, has a fully searchable engine where hundreds of articles can be found relating to leprosy.

The journal is freely available online, and also available as a printed edition to paying subscribers. Please contact lepra@lepra.org. uk if you would like to order a copy.

Lepra secures

Crown Agent

ASCEND

(Accelerating the Sustainable Control and Elimination of Neglected Tropical Diseases)

funding

In August, we officially signed a £650,000 contract with the UK’s Crown Agents who are implementing the Department for International Development’s (DFID) ASCEND project to train health workers in advocacy communications and social mobilisation for lymphatic filariasis (LF) in Bangladesh.

With a timeframe of 7 months, Lepra aims to bolster Bangladesh’s health system by training up to 5,500 health workers in LF Morbidity Management and Disability Prevention (MMDP) care.

Serious disability due to the painful swelling of limbs, scrota and breasts can often result from LF, which is sometimes called ‘elephantiasis.’ It is a parasitic disease caused by microscopic thread-like worms, which are transmitted to humans through the bite of an infected mosquito.

The offspring of the worms destroy the lymphatic system of the body.

Half the population of Bangladesh live at risk of LF, which is widespread in 19 districts of the country.

With just three doctors and three nurses per 10,000 people, Bangladesh is ill equipped to deal with these health issues; health system strengthening is key to providing the healthcare required.

Lepra and ASCEND are committed to implementing a ‘leave no one behind’ approach across all programme activities.

Further updates will be provided in the next edition of Lepra News.

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Life in a co l o ny A leprosy colony, leprosarium, or lazar house was historically a place to quarantine people with leprosy.

Quarantine in leprosy colonies was abolished by official decree only as late as the 1960s.

Many of these colonies are now historical sites, or have become naturalised with the locality and are lived in by those who are not affected by leprosy.

Spinalonga, located in the Gulf of Elounda in north-eastern Crete in Greece, was one of the last leprosy colonies in Europe, written about by our ambassador Victoria Hislop in her famed novel The Island.

With increased prejudice against those affected by leprosy, the word ‘colony’ was gradually phased out and the word ‘settlement’ became more accepted. In the early days of the 1930s, those sent to help were Church-going Anglicans who were doctors, nurses or lay workers. The aim was to give a sense of community to the settlement through self-sufficiency and mutual aid but with an overarching caring management who aimed to either cure, or limit the symptoms of leprosy. Medical research was often carried out in the settlements.

&

Isaac Elfrida would contract another illness and die.

Isaac’s body was emaciated; his skin like yellow cracked parchment, his legs covered with infected ulcers, his face a painful mask of lumps and scars, his eyesight and voice both failing.

Elfrida, on the other hand, came in as an easily curable case, even securing employment within the hospital as head nurse in 1943 once her treatment was finished. Both as a patient and as a member of staff, she showed her sense of gratitude to the colony through her loyalty, and care of her patients.

Since Isaac’s initial admission, treatment for leprosy advanced significantly, and he was given new and experimental treatments.

After 12 months his condition had drastically improved. His ulcers had dried up, his facial appearance was restored, the nodules subsided and for the first time since his admission in 1932, his record card showed a simple but encouraging word “improved”.

Life in a colony was often challenging, and the experiences of people who lived in them Hospital staff became aware of Isaac’s could be wrought with physical, psychiatric blossoming relationship with Elfrida, but it and financial difficulties. Isaac came to the seemed like a hopeless cause considering his Itu colony in Nigeria as a small diagnosis and ongoing health boy in 1932. He suffered from a struggles. Despite this, both their particularly aggressive form of families agreed to their marriage. leprosy and despite extensive treatments, failed to respond to After twelve months of any of them. Over the course treatment, Isaac was given a of fifteen years, his condition full, clean bill of health. He was deteriorated to the point that he discharged shortly after this, seemed close to death and with much to the delight of Elfrida a severely compromised immune who cried with joy and thanked system, there was a fear that he the staff of the hospital.

Isaac & Elfrida

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Victoria Hislop

Lepra ambassador and best selling author of The Island.

Victoria Hislop has been a Lepra ambassador since 2013 and has supported us enormously over the years. Ahead of the launch of the long awaited sequel to The Island, we had a chance to catch up with Victoria and chat all things leprosy, including the inspiration for her bestselling book and why she continues to support Lepra.

Congratulations on your wonderful new novel, One August Night; the sequel to The Island. Can you remind us what spurred you originally to write about Spinalonga and leprosy in particular?

I went on holiday to Crete with my family back in 2001. We usually spent the morning on the beach and did something more cultural in the afternoon. I spotted a small entry in the guidebook that intrigued me – it was for Spinalonga. It was only a few sentences but said that it had been a Venetian Fortress, an Ottoman settlement and a leprosy hospital from 1903 until 1957. It was the last part that intrigued me! I was born in 1959 so it seemed that the history of the place was still “warm” and recent. So we set off by car to the village opposite and took a boat across, and my imagination was instantly transported.

I had expected the place to have a miserable atmosphere but it was quite the opposite – there were signs that people there had lived in a community, with all the usual aspects of any Greek village – a bakery, a church, shops, small houses – even pots of geraniums.

A review by The Observer states that One August Night is ‘brilliantly researched historical fiction’. How did you set about gathering your original and subsequent research?

I bought all the available guidebooks but in English the information was very scant. The only proper history was in Greek and at that time I didn’t speak a word. So I knew from that point that I would be depending on my

imagination a lot! For the research into the disease itself, I approached Professor Diana Lockwood at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. She was incredibly friendly and generous and invited me to meet her – and not only told me a lot about leprosy but also leant me her textbooks from the period just before the cure for leprosy was discovered. They were very rare and valuable and I was incredibly grateful for her trust! I used to lock them in a fireproof cabinet every night when I had finished reading for the day.

After that I spent a lot of time in Crete just taking in the atmosphere and watching how people interacted. But my lack of Greek at the time meant that I couldn’t do any really detailed research about how Spinalonga had actually operated – so I had to simply imagine!

“

We are talking about a deep vein of prejudice that has existed for millenia.

How easy was it for you to revisit Spinalonga and Plaka, places where it could be argued people lived in isolation to varying degrees, and re-imagine the characters once more?

Actually going across to Spinalonga was very easy – several boats went there each day, and after a while I went so often that the boatman stopped charging me. I think he imagined I was slightly strange to have this compulsion.

I stayed in the village of Plaka for a while, so I knew the pace at which it operated. At that time there was just one café and three tavernas in Plaka – and no shops. Now it seems like a small town.

It wasn’t so hard to imagine the characters – because I imagined that the leprosy patients were simply real people, like any Greek villagers. And I travelled around in the hills of

www.victoriahislop.com

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Crete and found villages that really had not changed at all – so it was not very difficult to imagine them back in the 1950s.

Did you always intend to write a sequel and if so, do you think it helped to complete the novel during lockdown?

The sequel was not a long-term plan! But at the beginning of lockdown, the idea began to form and it was a perfect time to write.

We were all in the house, needing something to keep our minds off what was happening around the world – and to retreat into the imagination was the perfect escape. I started writing at 9 each morning and finished at around 6. So there was little disturbance – little distraction! And I realised how much easier it is to write under these circumstances than the usual ones – where we all have meetings and social lives!

The individuals are profoundly affected by leprosy, albeit in different ways. Is there a common theme running through the two novels which you think has most impact on the lives of those portrayed?

The main character from The Island, Maria, has been cured of leprosy at the beginning of One August Night, but there are many occasions on which she realises that stigma is still firmly attached to her. Even though she carries no signs of having had the disease, there are people who shun her. There are other characters in One August Night who carry different stigma or shame.

What do you personally think is the most emotional or difficult aspect of a leprosy diagnosis today?

I think it must be fear! Although as soon as someone is reassured that the disease is totally curable, I hope that fear goes away.

But in some communities in the developing world, they are also afraid of being shunned and that must be terrible. When the message has not got through that this is a curable disease, the prejudice remains.

The Island was first published in 2005 and I believe you became an ambassador for Lepra in 2013. How do you think the issues of prejudice and discrimination towards people affected by leprosy have changed in that time?

I haven’t travelled for a few years to see Lepra’s work first hand, but I am sure that Photograph by Bill Waters

they are doing everything they can to get this message through – but we are talking about a deep vein of prejudice that has persisted for millennia – so I think it will go on for a while longer.

This year you were granted honorary Greek citizenship for your promotion of Greek history and culture through your books, in particular about Spinalonga and it being the last leprosy colony in Europe. How does it feel to be so warmly embraced by Greece?

It was a truly wonderful honour to be recognised in this way. A few weeks ago, I swore my allegiance to the country and now am a full citizen. Since The Island came out in 2005, it has been translated into nearly 40 languages – so the word has spread about this place more widely. Hundreds of thousands of people visit Spinalonga every year, many of them brought there by the novel, and having had comments from many of them I think people are touched by a story of despair and suffering that turns into one of hope.

For anyone who has read The Island, they will know that Spinalonga is a unique manifestation of meaningful and universal values that seem more relevant today, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, than ever. If you had to use three words to sum up the essence of Spinalonga, what would they be?

Isolation, solidarity, hope One August Night is available to buy here: smarturl.it/orderOneAugustNight

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Autumn-winter appeals After a tumultuous year of change across the world, Lepra remains committed to helping those affected by leprosy through dedicated awareness raising campaigns and fundraising.

GI INGTUESDAY

World Leprosy Day 2021

Give the Gift of December

On December 1st, we will celebrate Giving Tuesday, a day to inspire charitable giving and the changing of lives. We will be asking our loyal and generous supporters to Give the Gift of Aid, through a dedicated Gift Aid Appeal. By updating your Gift Aid credentials with us, you could give more without having to spend more! Find out more by visiting lepra.org.uk/get-involved/donate/ a-guide-to-gift-aid

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Sunday 31st January will see us commemorate World Leprosy January Day. On January 27th, Cantata Dramatica will be performing once again at St Stephen Church Walbrook, London with a proportion of the proceeds from both ticket sales and live streaming contributions kindly being donated to Lepra. This year Cantata Dramatica will be performing “Great Greek Poems” set to music, which will include Toby Young’s “Five Greek Love Songs”. For more information or to register your interest for this event, please visit lepra.org.uk/events

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2019- 2020

Annual Report and Accounts Lepra remains evidence-led, open to all faiths and committed to helping those affected by leprosy and LF live a life free from disability, discrimination and cruelty. Those core principles of being secular and evidenceled have enabled us to navigate 96 years of global upheavals. At the end of 2019/20 we entered another tumultuous period of global change, brought about by another infectious disease, COVID-19. As before, our principles have helped us work through this difficult time. Your gifts are vital.

Eighty-Seven pence in every pound is spent on charitable activities and 13 pence goes towards raising the next pound.

In this edition of Lepra News, you will find our impact report, which offers a detailed breakdown of our work in India, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. Lepra has continued to implement projects and assist local governments in supporting those in

need. In the past 12 months, for example, we have: • diagnosed and provided triage for 41,504 people with leprosy • reached 995,659 people through health education and events to raise awareness of leprosy and other neglected tropical diseases.

The training of healthcare staff remains a priority for us, and during this period, we have: • Trained 29,241 government health staff, along with 74% more new healthcare workers, volunteers, doctors and Accredited Social Healthcare Activists (ASHA’s) compared to last year.

To read the full Annual Report, please visit our website lepra.org.uk/about-us/openinformation/annual-reports

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Impact 2019-2020

21,863

We diagnosed and helped treat 21,863 new cases of LF this year.

63,402

We screened, diagnosed and provided triage for 41,504 people with leprosy

41,504

29,241

We trained 63,402 people to self-care for their condition at home this year.

We trained 29,241 government health staff, twice as much as last year, along with 74% more new health care workers, volunteers, doctors Accredited Social Health Activists and teachers compared to last year.

22,715

We helped 22,715 people with leprosy and LF access government grants and support. This is 87% more than last year.

995,659 We reached 995,659 people through health education, and events to raise awareness of leprosy and other neglected diseases.

260,893 We reached 260,893 people through diagnosis, treatment and care.

4,610

35,616

We issued 35,616 pairs of protective sandals this year.

Of the 995,659 people we reached, 217,186 were reached through health education within schools. A 67% increase compared to last year.

217, 186

We performed 4,610 Hydrocele operations this year.

328 328 people affected by leprosy received reconstructive surgery to restore the movement and appearance of their hands and feet, reducing prejudice and rebuilding their self-esteem.

All Lepra support is provided free of charge to the people we support.

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Country updates 2019-2020

India

The 2019-20 financial year was the final year of the ‘Restoring the lives of forgotten people’ (RLFP) project, focussed on Samastipur District, Bihar, India, and financed by the National Lottery Community Fund. The project exceeded its 5-yearWEST target by reaching 121,217 people DELHI affected by leprosy and LF, providing them with timely treatment and care – notably morbidity management and disability prevention (MMDP).

Follow-up data from 20,466 project beneficiaries affected by lymphoedema shows that MMDP works: 8,747 people with Grade I disability were returned to normal, 8,443 with Grade II reversed to Grade I disability, 2,378 Grade III cases to Grade II and 898 cases from Grade IV reversed to Grade III. In looking to the sustainability of the project’s impact, over its five-year period 7(/$1*$1$ of implementation, affected people were mobilised to understand their rights, access benefits and services and advocate for addressing gaps in services. SelfSupport Groups established by the project will continue to work in coordination with other networks focused on disability, including Jeevika, an organisation which plays a lead role in microfinance initiatives and sustainable livelihoods.

The project also successfully embedded MMDP services in 7 health facilities. To ensure that people affected by leprosy and LF continue to enjoy the benefits of the RFLP intervention after the project ended, the project trained government health staff at Primary Health Centres and integrated leprosy and LF services into the existing local health system.

Government Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) and other local service providers will continue to play an

important role in facilitating access for people affected by leprosy and LF to the services they require.

A similar project, ‘Sankalp’, focussed on building an integrated approach to disability care for people affected by leprosy and LF in Panna District, Madhya Pradesh, India, and funded by effect:hope, was also successfully completed in March 2020.

Again, in Bihar, the Vodafone ‘Mobilising Men’s Health’ project extended its year two activities from Munger to Kaimur District. The second phase of the project is focused on building capacity of the district and government health care facilities to provide hydrocelectomies and facilitate these operations over a period of 2 years, up to 2021. As per the project proposal, the target in 2019-20 (Phase 2, Year 1) was 1,000 hydrocelectomies, out of which 700 were to be performed in private hospitals and 300 in government health facilities.

ODISHA

Over the full year, the project saw a total of 1,970 men affected by hydrocele and arranged 1,000 hydrocelectomies, as per the project target for the year. Thanks to the advocacy efforts of project staff, the government initiated hydrocele surgery at all 10 government health facilities in Kaimur District.

Health system strengthening coupled with the case finding and advocacy of local ‘Community Champions’, often men who had undergone hydrocele surgery themselves, together helped deliver the annual project target. In year three, 2020-21, the aim will be for the authorities in all 38 districts of Bihar to promote and facilitate hydrocele operations, with only minimal technical and service support provided by Lepra.

lepra.org.uk

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.85,*5$0

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Country updates 2019-2020

Bangladesh

The 2019-20 financial year Motivator’ pilot681$0*$1project in April 2019 serving saw Lepra Bangladesh begin local self-help groups of people affected by the third, three year phase leprosy and LF in Bogura, Sirajganj, Pabna, of leprosy health system Natore and surrounding districts. One in strengthening support to the two people affected by leprosy and LF have government in a project jointly severe anxiety and/or depression and for 6</+( %2*85$ funded by effect:hope and some time Lepra has identified the need to Lepra. The ultimate goal of go beyond medical treatment and morbidity the intervention is a leprosy management to address the mental well being free Bangladesh, where there of people affected by these two disfiguring 0$8/9,%$ is zero transmission, zero 6,5$*21diseases.

1$725( morbidity, zero disability and zero social consequences due The pilot project took selected individuals +$%,*$1to the disease. The project from 30 self-help groups and provided them 3$%1$ began with the establishment of with basic counselling skills, to address issues standardised high level national amongst group members wherever possible data collection, diagnosis and and, where necessary, to refer acute cases to treatment guidelines, together professionals within the government health with training materials and system. Lepra worked with 448 self-help and procedures. self-care groups in Bangladesh and the longterm goal, given the positive results of the In phase two of the project pilot, is to extend this support to each group this knowledge and training and, ultimately, to extend this approach to was extended to district level Lepra’s group work in India. government staff and in phase three this capacity building The calendar year concluded with Lepra will be reinforced and further extended Bangladesh taking a lead role in the to community level staff and volunteers, organisation of the first National Leprosy directly engaging people affected by leprosy Congress in Dhaka, on 11 December 2019, wherever possible. The project aims to opened by the Prime Minister, the Honourable encourage people affected to come forward Sheikh Hasina and funded by the Sasakawa for early diagnosis and treatment while at the Health Foundation (SHF). This event was same time strengthening the capacity of the followed on 12 December 2019 by the first government health system to meet the need. national group meeting of people affected by leprosy, which was also organised by Lepra A new exciting Bangladesh programme with the support of The Leprosy Mission development in 2019-20, funded by Baillie International Bangladesh (TLMIB) and funded Gifford, was the start-up of a new ‘Mental and attended by SHF, including Mr. Sasakawa himself.

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Zimbabwe

Country updates 2019-2020 In 2018-19, Lepra Programmes staff visited Zambia and Malawi to meet with senior government health staff and NGO heads to explore the leprosy situation in these countries and wider southern Africa region, given disturbing reports of the re-emergence of the disease in a context where the medical expertise and infrastructure to deal with it had largely disappeared.

Following an approach by a representative of the John Bradburne Memorial Society (JBMS) with respect to the Mutemwa Leprosy and Care Centre, in Mutoko, Zimbabwe, a follow up visit to southern Africa was organised in June 2019.

As well as visiting the centre, meetings were held in Harare with senior government and WHO staff, which concluded with the request for Lepra to provide training support to a regional leprosy workshop.

The regional ‘training of trainers’ workshop, bringing together health staff from Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe was held in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, from 2-10 August 2019 and was facilitated by two experienced LEPRA India staff, Mr. A. Kameswara Rao and Mr. Santosh

Mozambique Lepra’s support to the PRODISA project, implemented by NLR and ADRA, came to an end in February 2020. The project, which began in March 2018, had the goal of increasing the income of 1,000 impoverished smallholder farmers (of whom 30% were affected by leprosy or LF) in Ile and Lugela Districts of Zambezia Province, Mozambique.

The project had three main pillars: 1) the promotion of conservation agriculture to improve nutrition; 2) a ‘combined approach’ to healthcare needs, with timely diagnosis and referral combined with self-care rehabilitation; and 3) the capacity building of self-help groups on new agricultural

Kumar Singh. Following the workshop, the two LEPRA India staff travelled to Mutemwa to provide technical advice and support to the staff and patients at the centre, as well as providing leprosy training to government staff at the local hospital in Mutoko.

While visiting the centre at Mutemwa the LEPRA India staff saw each leprosy patient individually and took measurements of their feet. Unique, adapted, sandals for each person were subsequently made by skilled technical staff in Bihar and shipped back to Zimbabwe.

While this provides a short/medium term solution to patient footwear needs, in the longer term the intention is to train a local Zimbabwean cobbler in the production of these specialised sandals.

In November 2019, Lepra signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the John Bradburne Memorial Society (JBMS).

This partnership provides support to patients and staff at the JBMS centre in Mutemwa, and uses this facility to model best practices in the treatment and care of people affected by leprosy. The plan is to use Mutemwa, as a resource for building leprosy knowledge and capacity, not only amongst health staff in Zimbabwe but also the wider southern Africa region.

practices and livelihoods. Despite facing various implementation challenges, not least the engagement of persons with a disability in agricultural activities, the project has improved nutritional levels, enhanced livelihood security and reduced the popular prejudice encountered by the target group.

The leprosy and LF self-help groups set up by an earlier Lepra/NLR intervention played a key role in PRODISA’s success as they served as the principal channel for the projects implementation.

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Fundraising and events Schools Appeal

Christmas cards

Now that UK schools have returned, we are really excited to be working together once again to deliver awareness raising and fundraising opportunities across the education sector. During lockdown, our team developed a programme of activities that can be delivered remotely, whilst still offering students key learning benefits including strong Citizenship curriculum links, the importance of charities, whilst also helping young people to understand the role they play as global citizens. The project also includes important opportunities to understand how COVID-19 is impacting people in other countries, giving students the chance to gain a wider understanding of the pandemic and its effects around the world.

With only a few weeks until Christmas, make sure you are ready by purchasing our Christmas cards which we are selling through Cards for Good Causes. Buying our cards through this website is an easy way to support us in our mission to help those people affected by leprosy.

Our staff can work with you to deliver a virtual or prerecorded group assembly, and also within a classrooom setting, for example a PSHE lesson. Students will have an opportunity to undertake extracurricular fundraising (with ideas and tips from us) and will develop a sense of ownership for their own fundraising project, promoting their role in society as responsible citizens. By designing and delivering their own creative projects, students are offered a real opportunity to transform the life of someone effected by leprosy. For more information on how we can work with your school, please contact Olivia Egan, our Fundraising Partnership Manager on OliviaE@lepra.org.uk.

Please follow this link and enjoy some of our beautifully unique cards: cardsforcharity.co.uk/ourcharities/lepra We also have a collection of different e-card designs available at: dontsendmeacard.com

Great Virtual Race across Tenessee

VOLUNTEERS WANTED

Lepra’s Challenge Ambassador, Tom Barton, completed a staggering 636 miles between May and July 2020, averaging about 7 miles a day or 50 miles a week.

Are you looking for a new challenge?

Tom became an official ambassador for Lepra in 2019, supporting us through various challenge events over the years.

His passion for supporting Lepra began at a young age, with his father Rex acting as a keen supporter over many years.

Tom says: “Lepra sponsored my dad’s research trips to India in the 1970s and I was fortunate enough to go to Victoria Hospital in Central India with him a decade later on a follow-up visit. Seeing first-hand the devastation that this disease can cause, as well as the stigma and prejudice directed against people who already live under difficult circumstances, has inspired me to continue to raise awareness that Leprosy is still very much an active disease.”

Thank you, Tom, for raising awareness of leprosy through this truly awe-inspiring achievement!

We are so proud to have you as our Challenge Ambassador. To find out more about our challenge events, please visit lepra.org.uk/events

Do you want meaningful experience in a charitable organisation?

If so, we have the opportunity for you! We are seeking volunteers from across the UK to assist us with a wide range of activities, in particular a person to liaise with Parish and Faith Magazines to raise the profile of Lepra.

For more information please contact OliviaE@lepra.org. uk or visit lepra.org.uk/ careers to view a copy of the volunteer job description.

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Yadari Ramadevi A health activist during a global pandemic.

Yadari Ramadevi has been an Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) with Lepra for 14 years.

Yadari works out of the Buchavaram Primary Health Care Centre (PHC), Krishna District in Andhra Pradesh.

As lockdowns set in, the influx of migrant workers from different parts of the state increased the workload of our ASHAs. Monitoring arrivals, departures, and the health and wellbeing of the migrant worker population has been challenging.

A major challenge was a lack of public transport to reach health services. A great deal of planning was required to ensure people in need of medical attention in remote areas were reached. This was at a cost. Long working days, and repetitive exposure to potential COVID-19 cases put a great deal of pressure on not just the ASHAs, but their families too. Yadari’s husband, who had always been extremely supportive

ARE YOU

ELIGIBLE?

Last year, Lepra claimed over £100,000 through the scheme, at no extra cost to our generous supporters. To find out how you can get involved, visit our website.

Date for the diary

December 1, 2020 Together we give.

and encouraging of her ASHA work, was struggling to come to terms with the personal risk Yadari was putting on herself.

“My own fear and anxiety, coupled with the withdrawal of support from my family members, was very upsetting. But we have to save lives, and that is what I aim to do.”

To manage her worries, Yadari reached out to Lepra staff, the PHC Medical Officer and her supervisor for support.

“I want to personally thank Mr. Rao, from Lepra, who encouraged me, and instilled confidence to handle my issues both mentally and physically. The Lepra team and PHC provided me with counselling techniques, follow up strategies and need-based referral information required to support and reassure the families I help. With the support of Lepra, none of the persons affected with Leprosy and LF had any delay to their treatment.”

Yadari discussed with her husband and family members the huge benefit her work has within the community and why their support was intrinsic to her being able to carry out her role effectively. Yadari’s husband now passes on his knowledge about COVID-19 within his workplace.

Lepra wants to thank Yadari for her courage and selfless dedication to her work. Lives have indeed been saved.

DON’T WASH YOUR HANDS OF US! Our COVID-19 appeal has continued throughout the pandemic, enabling us to continue our vital work. Your kind donations have allowed our team in India to procure a new PCR machine, which in turn has ramped up our ability to help and assist the Indian government with COVID-19 awareness, preparedness and testing.

As winter approaches, and with cases of COVID-19 on the rise globally, we are doubling down on our commitment to support those in need throughout this crisis. Our support of those affected by leprosy also continues thanks to your generosity and we are grateful for your unwavering support in these difficult times.

Lepra, 28 Middleborough, Colchester, Essex, CO1 1TG 01206 216 700 - www.lepra.org.uk - lepra@lepra.org.uk Registered charity number: 213251