Seasons Greetings
London – Dec 2022
Letter from the Trustees
Dear Donors & Partners,
Another eventful year for the foundation and we thank our donors, partners and well-wishers for the continued support.
Amoke Ward @ UCH, Ibadan, our main pain management hub (PMH), continues to serve the SCD patient population in the region where access to routine medication and crisis management practices are facilitated. We embarked on a project to supply equipment and distribute a tried and tested drug intervention covering three regions of the country.
- Transcranial doppler (TDC) machines – by partnering with Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital (ESUTH), a stroke prevention programme covering three states (Ondo, Ekiti & Kogi) began. Upon the acquisition of the TCD machine during the year click here – sonography training for physicians and technicians commenced and a research program is currently being designed.
- Hydroxyurea – our aim to drive best practice to halt progression of the debilitating effect of SCD. Its use is shown to reduce the vaso-occlusive crises, stroke, infections, malaria, transfusions, and death in children with SCD. AF has provided Hydroxy FOC for patients at the PMH @ UCH and the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital (UATH). factsheet
AF will focus on the following areas in the coming year.
Direct Fundraising – AF has identified a couple of our patients who will benefit from urgent hip replacement surgeries due to complications from SCD referred to medically as Avascular Necrosis. The request for medical assistance click here
Implementation Research – Amoke is engaged in evaluating the implementation strategies used to improve the uptake and sustainability of SCD prevention programs in SCD. The aim is to improve understanding in how to scale up and evaluate new and existing programs and use them to overcome barriers to treatment and prevention of vaso-occlusive crisis in SCD patients. The challenge is to ensure that patients who could benefit from these outcomes, actually receive them. SCD mortality rates continue to rise in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) due to the difficulty in implementing prevention, screening, and treatment programs.
We are extremely grateful for your support over the past 12 months as, our staff have sought to navigate the changing landscape whilst keeping our focus on the key objective – to Live Well with Sickle Cell.
Have a wonderful festive season!
Trustees