Siddalls in Kenya: Kipkaren Hospice

CO, Rebecca, Adrian, Purity

On Friday December 23, we had a chance to go to the Living Room International hospice at Kipkaren, east of Eldoret (http://www.livingroominternational.org/kenya/). Both adults and children live at the hospice, for short periods of time or for long term care. Sometimes it is for palliative care but most of the time it is for healing or long term care. I liked going there so much that I think that I will try to spend some weekend time there every month. Alex stayed pretty close to mom and dad however later that day, he said that he liked the babies. The staff we met were wonderful. I would like to tell you about the residents.

Noah

Noah is in his late 20’s. He has a brain injury and is paralyzed on his left side from a drowning. Noah survived the drowning however he was not taken well care of. When the living room staff found him, I believe that they said he was down to 30 kg. Noah has been at the hospice now as a long term resident for some time around a year and is doing very well. He can’t verbalize however is able to communicate simply with the staff through non-verbal communication.


Mary

We met Mary when we first came in and were getting our tour. She was lying in her bed. Mary is 14 or 15 and has been at the hospice for about 8 months or so. When Mary first arrived, she could not walk and was severely malnourished. She still does not verbalize however she is walking and has been rehabilitating well. I do not know why she has these problems whether it is due to malnutrition or something else. You will see a picture of Mary putting on slippers. We brought these sheepskin slippers and they fit her perfectly. I think they will be better for walking than the flipflops she was wearing. Mary was very interested in Alex. She communicate that she wanted Alex to come near to her and then later on when we went to the living room area, she wanted Alex to sit beside her.


Mary in her new slippers

Purity grabbed Jim’s heart immediately. When we came in, she went to him right away and he probably had her in his arms for two out of the three hours we were there. Purity has only been at the hospice for about 4 weeks. She is HIV positive and 2 ½ years old. The staff said that she is responding well to the anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs. She looks healthy but she is small because she has been malnourished.

The most beautiful smile on Adrian

Mercy is also about years old and has only been at the hospice for a very short period of time. She was severely malnourished when she came to the hospice and is only about the size of a 8 month old due to the malnutrition. She is eating well at the hospice and seems to be managing well.

Adrian. Beautiful Adrian. Apart from our friend Michael, he has the most beautiful smile in the whole world. Adrian arrived at the hospice about one week before we visited. He is 5 years old and has been blind since birth. Adrian is HIV positive and is quite sick right now. Jim was rubbing his back and Adrian’s caregiver had to tell Jim to stop because it was causing him pain – Adrian has boils all over his back. That tells me that he certainly has AIDS symptoms. However, they have started him on the ARVs so hopefully they will start to fight the virus soon. We brought some presents and gave Adrian the St. Bernard dog that you see him with in the pictures. It was nice and soft. When he felt it the big beautiful smile came onto his face. Adrian’s smile was my Christmas present. Adrian felt all the parts of the dog as someone explained to him what they there. Adrian wanted to take his dog for a walk so they tied a rope around the dog’s neck and Adrian took him for a walk. With Adrian was nyanya (grandma) Rebecca. I think Rebecca comes to volunteer at the hospice but I am not sure.

Belinda and Marcie

Little Belinda is 3 months old. She came to the hospice with her mom shortly after she was born. Her mom was dying of AIDS and Belinda was diagnosed as HIV positive. Her mom died when Belinda was 2 months old. Belinda has been started on ARVs since she arrived at the hospice and was diagnosed. She is growing well and is healthy. If a pregnant woman starts on certain ARV drugs when she is pregnant, the transmission of the HIV from mom to baby decreases from 50% t0 3% or so. So part of the education and prevention process with AMPATH is to have people get tested for HIV early and often (if they are sexually active). Unfortunately, this did not occur with Belinda’s mom.

Jacob

Jacob has been at the hospice for three months. Before that he was in the hospital in Nairobi. Jacob is a teacher, married and the father of 3 children between 3 and 10. I cannot remember the whole story from when I first heard it in August however Jacob was at school when someone (? a student) came into the school with a gun. Jacob was shot in the back injuring his spinal column. He is paralyzed from the waist down. However, his upper body is good so he can push himself around in the wheel chair. Jacob’s family lives close to the hospice and visits him often. He was going home for Christmas week when we met him. Jacob is a history teacher and loves to read. His English was excellent, as you would expect from a teacher. He reminded me of my dad. Jacob is still in rehab. When I asked him if he was going to teach again, he said that he thought that he would. There is a school and residence for children which is part of the organization that the hospice belongs to, so maybe he will get a job there. I would think that they would be lucky to get him. We will look for some history books so that when we go back, we will take them for him. He seems to have a very strong character and the will to continue through rehab.

Sharlene

Sharlene is 8 years old. She has been at the hospice for quite some time and will likely stay there for long term care. By looking at Sharlene I think she may have Muscular Dystrophy. She didn’t really respond but she looked healthy and well taken care of. Along with Sharlene was Marcie who is 5. I think Marcie also has MD. Marcie’s mom and baby sister were there while we were visiting. Marcie was walking with the support of her mom.

Teresa

Teresa was extremely sweet. I spent a good bit of time with her. She has had stroke and is paralyzed on the one side. She is not walking at all. Teresa certainly understood what we were saying to her but could not verbalize back. However she certainly communicated through her facial expressions and her arm. I love the connection that women have between each other. No matter who you are or what physical or mental state you are in, women have a bond that is very distinct and strong. I love feeling that bond with the women in my life.

Jacob and Paulina

I had just a little bit of time to spend with Pauline because we were leaving soon. However, as I held her hand and talked her, Pauline responded with a big smile. I am not 100% sure of Pauline’s situation however the staff indicated that she was found at her sister’s house and was very sick. I think she is HIV positive. Her sister’s husband no longer wanted her sister to look after Pauline (very cultural that the wife has to basically ignore her family) so Pauline was moved to the hospice. I cannot remember any other details however her sister does come to visit her.

Joseph

I didn’t really talk to Joseph much however Jim did spend some time with him. Joseph’s legs are not good however he is still walking. He was in good spirits and seemed physically healthy.

I think that is everyone who lives there. I look forward to the next time we are able to go back and visit.