New Day Summer 2021

SUM M E R 2 02 1

THANK YOU FOR BRINGING HOPE AND HEALING TO MOZAMBIQUE

PAG E 2 — S EC T I O N / PAG E T I T L E

THE COVID VACCINE CLINIC AT ANANDABAN HOSPITAL, NEPAL

Patients will be able to receive eye surgery and the love and care that are at the heart of work you so generously fund.

THANK YOU.

Dear friend, I am always so thankful as I read through each New Day. It is a reminder of just how much you are doing to mend this broken world, to serve God, and to change the lives of so many people across the globe.

BECAUSE OF YOU, Hubs of Hope will be built in Northern Mozambique, enabling people like Rosalina, Bishop Jose, Paulino and Isabel to scale up their work. Your generosity will provide training in healthcare and farming techniques, and a place that the whole community can call their own. In remote areas of Mozambique, waiting for health information will no longer take years to reach people, but can be shared on a screen in each village. The potential for this ground-breaking technology is limitless and you have made it possible. THANK YOU. BECAUSE OF YOU, the new surgical unit at Chandkhuri Hospital will be built this year.

The dark cloud of potential closure that hung over this beacon of hope has disappeared.

With the Covid virus peaking in India, it was tragically inevitable that a second deadly wave would sweep neighbouring Nepal. Thankfully, Leprosy Mission teams are at the forefront of the Covid vaccination programme in Nepal with Anandaban Hospital leading the programme in the Kathmandu valley. However, funding is desperately needed to continue the vaccine rollout. Without the vaccine, many more lives will be lost in the poor and remote communities in which we serve.

I know, like me, you were so grateful to receive your Covid vaccines. But with it came with a tinge of guilt knowing that our country’s wealth means that we were at the front of the global queue. I pray that you can help partner with us in this desperate race against time to save lives in Nepal.

Praying that the Lord keeps you safe and protected.

Every blessing,

Peter Waddup Chief Executive

L E T T E R F R O M P E T E R — PAG E 3

In this edition we feature some of the transformation you have brought across Africa and Asia.

I thank God for you every day, for without your sacrificial giving and prayers, the work at Anandaban Hospital in Nepal, Chandkhuri Hospital in India, and across communities in the troubled country of Mozambique would not be possible.

BECAUSE OF YOU, the lives of critically ill Covid patients have been saved at our hospitals in India. At a time when the country saw 4,000 lives lost to Covid per day, you provided vaccines to people living in communities affected by leprosy. Crucially this included the transport needed to reach the vaccination clinics. You have stood with these people during their darkest hour. THANK YOU.

PAG E 4 — T H A N K YO U FO R B E I N G A L E P R O S Y C H A N G E M A K E R!

Because of your incredible response to The Unconditional Appeal, hundreds of Leprosy Changemakers have been trained in Mozambique. Amongst them are pillars of the community, such as traditional healers and faith leaders, who can now recognise the early signs of leprosy. Just like you, they are working to end leprosy and the heartache surrounding it. Each day they walk hand in hand with someone on the journey to being cured.

Fear and prejudice surrounding leprosy mean that health camps alone can never entirely rid Mozambique of the disease.

Leprosy Mission staff based in Pemba, the provincial capital of Cabo Delgado, realised that running pop-up clinics would never be enough because health

workers live outside of the villages they serve. For lasting change to happen there must be a cultural revolution at the very heart of every community. The barriers of stigma must be demolished so that people will confidently seek treatment. Because of you, this incredible transformation is beginning to take place in Mozambique.

The Unconditional Appeal was awarded UK Aid Match funding, meaning every pound you gave was doubled by the UK government. As a result, twice the number of Leprosy Changemakers are now changing lives and attitudes in their own communities. Thank you for making this incredible mission happen.

SNAPPING HIS WAY OUT OF POVERTY These striking photographs on pages 4-7 are taken by a young Mozambican photographer, Mário Macilau. Mário was 14 and living on the streets of Maputo, the capital of Mozambique, when he borrowed a camera from a friend.

He eventually swapped his mother’s mobile phone for a camera. As it was the family’s only mobile phone it was a risky move, but one that paid off. Mário taught himself photography and began uploading his work to an online blog at a local library. His unique insight into the lives of his fellow Mozambicans has led to him exhibiting his work internationally.

For every medical doctor in Mozambique there are 50 traditional healers. In the remote communities of Cabo Delgado, they are the first port of call for someone in need of medical care.

A person showing signs of leprosy only considers medical help when herbal medicine, given by a traditional healer, has not worked. Unfortunately, this wastes valuable time and puts them at risk of developing disabilities, such as blindness. Now, thanks to you, traditional healers like Rosalina are being trained as Leprosy Changemakers. Rosalina confidently refers suspected cases of leprosy to health workers who then provide a simple course of antibiotics to cure the disease.

Having been treated for leprosy herself, Rosalina tells us: “I am a healer, but I do not say that I can cure leprosy.

“If a healer says he cures leprosy don’t trust him.

“When I had leprosy, I visited a healer many times but he couldn’t cure me.

My health was getting worse and worse, until one day I decided to go to the hospital where I was diagnosed with leprosy. I started proper treatment.

“As a healer many people come to me to treat leprosy, but I refer them to the hospital.”

PAG E 6 — T H A N K YO U FO R B E I N G A L E P R O S Y C H A N G E M A K E R!

Isabel is married to a farmer who has been treated for leprosy. She knows intimately the challenges and dangers facing those affected by the disease within the farming community.

Leprosy causes nerve damage which robs people of feeling in their hands and feet. It’s not hard to imagine the injuries that can be inflicted on the soles of someone’s feet when they are completely numb.

When Isabel saw people struggling to work in the fields because of disabilities caused by leprosy, she began to help by working alongside them. She clearly has a big heart and decided to train as a Leprosy Changemaker. Now she helps to run the self-care group which her husband belongs to. She works with members of the group, showing them how to protect their hands and feet while working in the fields.

BISHOP JOSÉ Church leaders and Imams have deep and trusted relationships with the communities they serve. As well as appearing in the Bible, the story of Jesus healing a man with leprosy features in the Quran.

There is no better message to share than Jesus welcoming the man with leprosy back to the fold.

In doing so he is challenging an ancient myth that a person with leprosy is somehow cursed.

“We must not discriminate against these people because they are also children of God.”

VILLAGE CHIEF PAULINO Paulino said: ““For a long time many people were disabled because of leprosy. But since we learnt that we should refer people to hospital, the numbers have reduced.

“As the local leader, I joined the cause to fight this disease together with my people.”

CABO DELGADO, A TROUBLED PROVINCE Please pray for the people of Cabo Delgado.

More than 700,000 people have had to flee their homes in the past year to escape the escalating violence. Men with guns and machetes have been attacking communities and there are horrifying reports of beheadings.

Tragically it is most often people affected by leprosy who are unable to escape from a village under threat of attack.

Either they don’t have the financial means, or their disabilities prevent them from leaving. Please ask for God’s hand of protection over them.

Pray also for Leprosy Mission staff who risk their lives each day to help those affected by the disease. They are working with churches in Cabo Delgado to support those left homeless and traumatised by the violence.

T H A N K YO U FO R B E I N G A L E P R O S Y C H A N G E M A K E R! — PAG E 7

Bishop José said: “In my church a person who has leprosy is not discriminated against. We build houses for the people in our congregation who are affected by the disease, so that they can show they are members of the community just like everyone else.

PAG E 8 — G I V I N G T H E G I F T O F S I G H T

THANK YOU FOR GIVING THE GIFT OF SIGHT Thanks to your extraordinary generosity, building work has started on a new surgical unit at Chandkhuri Hospital in India. This is desperately needed as the hospital does not currently have a sufficiently sterile theatre to perform eye operations. The new surgical unit will house an ophthalmic theatre as well as a general operating theatre, giving the team the facility for a brandnew eyecare programme. Soon the miracle of eye surgery will take place at the hospital.

Thank you for bringing first class medical facilities to Chandkhuri Hospital, a place that will give love and care for decades to come. Dr Elkana wanted to share this message with you: “You have provided us with a new surgical unit and we are so thankful for the support and encouragement you have given. Soon the surgical unit will be finished and we can start surgeries and treatments which will be a blessing to so many. We pray that you will be blessed in return.”

When leprosy damages nerves in the face, it can cause the eyelid muscles to stop working.

Imagine not being able to blink or close your eyes. Without the protective and cleansing action of blinking, grit damages the surface of the eye and often leads to blindness.

As well as giving exemplary clinical care and services to leprosy patients, Chandkhuri Hospital is a lifeline to its surrounding community. The hospital is in a poor, rural area of Chhattisgarh State where there is no access to healthcare. To make sure that every person gets the treatment they need, Chandkhuri staff travel to villages in the area to provide dental care, physiotherapy, dermatology, care for mothers and babies, and leprosy services.

But thanks to you, a simple procedure to restore the blink mechanism will soon take place at Chandkhuri Hospital. You will be preventing blindness, giving the precious gift of sight!

The new surgical unit will also include a recovery room, an intensive care unit, and a doctors’ room and nurses’ station. The current theatre, which is not fit for purpose, will be transformed into an emergency operating room.

In the past year, during the pandemic, the team’s love and compassion has gone further than ever before. Staff have reached 102 surrounding villages with medical services and support, giving essential Covid health advice and providing emergency food packages for 1,000 people.

G I V I N G T H E G I F T O F S I G H T — PAG E 9

Above: Dr Manotosh Elkana, Medical Superintendent at Chandkhuri Hospital, India, is pictured at the groundbreaking ceremony for the new surgical unit

PAG E 10 — M E E T T H E FA M I LY

MEET THE FAMILY THANK YOU FOR BEING PART OF THE LEPROSY MISSION’S GLOBAL FAMILY. WE’D LOVE YOU TO MEET A FAMILY MEMBER, HEATHER ALFORD, FROM KENILWORTH, WARWICKSHIRE. HEATHER, COULD YOU TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOURSELF AND YOUR FAITH JOURNEY.

God was weaving in my life, preparing me for other things He had in store.

I was brought up in a Christian family and cannot remember a time when God was not a part of my life. However, there have been times when I have felt drawn closer into His love.

Sadly, my husband died quite suddenly. Devastating as it was, I found I felt closer to God. I felt him telling me Philip is safe in His care and that there were things for me to do. I spent the next few years trying to decipher what God wanted me to do.

I trained as a physiotherapist and worked in several hospitals as I followed my husband’s career path, until we settled in Kenilworth. I then moved into a specialist role with children as a paediatric physiotherapist.

I loved my work and, as I look back, I can see the thread that

My mother had always supported The Leprosy Mission and I continued to buy Leprosy Mission Christmas cards. So, while inputting my order in October 2008, I clicked

on the ‘About us’ section on the website. I saw that a physiotherapist was needed.

God had given me so clearly the answer I was looking for!

TELL US ABOUT YOUR TIME WORKING AT ANANDABAN HOSPITAL. I first went to Anandaban in 2009 and spent five months working on the wards and in the outpatients’ department.

Not speaking Nepali made things a little difficult, but most of the staff spoke a little English so we managed.

Above: Heather gives out woolly hats as the cold Nepali winter approaches in the aftermath of the 2015 earthquake

I met a young girl called Maya who I’ll never forget.

She transformed before my eyes from a depressed and introverted young girl to a fun-loving lady and now a mum herself. Maya felt she had been given a second chance at life after having operations on both her hands.

She is now able to use her fingers again, which had clawed as a result of leprosy.

When I think of Anandaban Hospital I think of Maya and I think of hope.

HAVE YOU VISITED THE HOSPITAL SINCE?

Before going out I asked my friends at church for hats to keep people warm over the cold Nepali winter.

I found myself almost overwhelmed with more than 300 hats, which we somehow managed to get to Nepal! It was lovely to be able to hand them out as we visited communities.

TELL US ABOUT THE WAYS IN WHICH YOU SUPPORT THE LEPROSY MISSION. I am a volunteer speaker for The Leprosy Mission. In a normal year I would expect to have at least one engagement a month, sometimes as part of a church service or speaking

to groups including Women’s Institute and Rotary.

I support the work financially and pray for the Mission. In my wildest dreams, I would not have thought that I would be doing this in my retirement, but it has changed my life. We have so much here that we take for granted. There are so many lives which are a constant struggle. God loves each one of us and it is a privilege to show some of that love by helping in whatever ways we can.

'For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, do not fear, I will help you.'

Isaiah 41:13 (NIV)

M E E T T H E FA M I LY — PAG E 1 1

I went back to Anandaban in 2010 to work for three months.

I then returned in 2015 in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake, which killed 9,000 people. It was incredibly sad to see the destruction and how it left people living in makeshift shelters. The hospital staff were amazing in their response to the many thousands needing urgent medical care and help to rebuild their lives.

Above: Retired physiotherapist Heather Alford is pictured with leprosy patient Maya at Anandaban Hospital, Nepal

PAG E 1 2 — VACC I N E H O P E FO R N E PA L

PICTURED IS MANOJ, THE FIRST PATIENT ON THE COVID ISOLATION WARD AT ANANDABAN HOSPITAL

VACCINE HOPE FOR NEPAL Anandaban Hospital has been at the heart of Nepal’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. It was among the first centres in Nepal to deliver the Covid vaccine, bringing a wave of hope to a vast mountainous area.

The roll-out began in January with 860 frontline health workers receiving the Oxford vaccine, manufactured in India.

As in the UK, lockdown and travel restrictions have been imposed in Nepal to control transmission.

Although the virus in the UK has affected many people’s livelihoods, in Nepal it has plunged millions into extreme poverty. There is desperate hunger and, for many, a struggle to stay alive each day.

The roll-out of a vaccine for Covid brings a new season, an opportunity to return to normality and a chance to prosper in the future.

RESPONDING TO A NATIONAL EMERGENCY Thanks to you, staff at Anandaban Hospital are caring for critically-ill coronavirus patients.

For us in the UK it is hard to imagine not having a local hospital to care for us should we need treatment. But at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic there was a very real fear this could happen. Would our NHS be overwhelmed by the sheer number of patients needing hospital care? Would there be a ventilator for every patient whose life depended on one? By the grace of God, these fears did not become a reality for us.

It is thanks to you that Covid patients in Nepal are receiving similar lifesaving care. And they are also benefiting from the testing that we in the UK have come to rely on to control the virus. More than 500 patients have been treated at a 30-bed Covid isolation unit which opened at Anandaban Hospital in October. The facility , which houses a ventilator and respirators, was created with a grant from the UK government. Many lives have been saved as a result.

A Covid testing laboratory is operating at Anandaban Hospital’s Research Centre. The facility supports the entire community as well as protecting people affected by leprosy and disability.

Hospital staff have also relayed Covid health messaging to 890,000 people living in hard to reach mountainous areas of Nepal. The team gave emergency food parcels to 3,250 vulnerable families and sanitation packs to 1,700 vulnerable families.

The Leprosy Mission has worked closely with the Nepali government since the 2015 earthquakes.

Anandaban Hospital became a designated Disaster Response Centre as a result of the excellent treatment it provided for earthquake victims. Thanks to you, Anandaban Hospital is able to care for many Nepali people again during the Covid crisis.

Above: Dr Pradip Sapkota, Medical Superintendent at Anandaban Hospital, having his Covid jab on the first day of the vaccine roll-out in Nepal

VACC I N E H O P E FO R N E PA L — PAG E 1 3

Government health staff and Leprosy Mission staff, working at Anandaban Hospital, were included in this first group. The vaccine roll-out has since been extended to other groups including clinically vulnerable people. This includes people affected by leprosy who are likely to have weakened immune systems. The number of vaccines, however, is

limited due to cost. More than 5,700 people have received their first Covid vaccine at Anandaban Hospital so far. Unfortunately the roll-out cannot continue without further help. This means many people will not get their second dose and many thousands will be left unvaccinated.

PAG E 1 4 — VACC I N AT E T H E M O S T V U L N E R A B L E

LEPROSY PATIENT SHOVA IS GIVEN THE FIRST DOSE OF THE COVID VACCINATION

Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, we have all been reminded of the importance of protecting the most vulnerable in society. Perhaps, you too have found yourself in that category. Maybe you have had to spend time shielding.

Now that many of have finally had the vaccine, we know that we have the hope of protection and safety.

For people affected by leprosy, the story is very different. Many remain vulnerable. Weakened immune systems caused by poor living conditions and inadequate diets, mean greater risk of suffering the most severe effects of the coronavirus. We must reach out to those living with leprosy at this time.

Covid cases have risen rapidly in Nepal. The need to vaccinate the most vulnerable, including those affected by leprosy, is becoming more and more pressing. Another wave could cause long-lasting devastation among families in remote villages.

Today, I am asking, will you stand by the team at Anandaban Hospital in Nepal by providing Covid vaccines? They are vital to protect people affected by leprosy.

As you will have read, Anandaban is again a beacon of light and place of hope during the pandemic. The staff at Anandaban are going above and beyond to make the hospital a vaccination centre. Will you also go above and beyond and provide essential vaccines today?

It costs just £30 to vaccinate 24 people! You can protect the most vulnerable in Nepal.

People affected by leprosy and other marginalised groups need the vaccine urgently. Your help is needed to reach as many people as possible. People like Shova, pictured left. Please give all you can to protect those most at risk in Nepal. You will be ensuring they are kept safe.

Here in the UK, we have seen how quickly vaccines can be rolled out. With your help, the same can happen at Anandaban. Your £30 can ensure 24 people most at risk are vaccinated. £75 can ensure 60 people are vaccinated, or a gift of £150 can ensure 120 people are vaccinated.

Will you help vaccinate the most vulnerable in Nepal today?

VACC I N AT E T H E M O S T V U L N E R A B L E — PAG E 1 5

WILL YOU HELP VACCINATE THE MOST VULNERABLE IN NEPAL?

Photo: Ruth Towell

CELEBRATE A LOVED ONE’S LIFE A gift in memory of someone you love and miss is a wonderful way to help the memories of them live on.

There are lots of different ways that you can celebrate your loved one’s life. You may like to give in lieu of flowers at a funeral, on a special anniversary or perhaps through a regular gift in memory.

However you choose to remember your loved one with The Leprosy Mission, their love will live on in the lives of people affected by leprosy for generations to come.

We know that giving in memory is very personal. So if there is anything we can help you with please get in touch with our Legacy and In Memory Manager, Imogen Moore, on PHONE 01733 370505 or at ENVELOPE imogenm@tlmew.org.uk.

We would love to support you, help answer any questions you may have, and hear more about your loved one’s story.

For more information, please visit Globe leprosymission.org.uk/inmemory

 The Leprosy Mission England, Wales, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, Goldhay Way, Orton Goldhay Peterborough, PE2 5GZ  01733 370505  post@tlmew.org.uk globe leprosymission.org.uk Registered Charity No. 1050327

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