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Our story starts in March 2006.<\/p>\nOur story starts in March 2006.<\/p>\n
Tayler Bequest Hospital is a beautiful looking building with a Cape Dutch exterior that concealed the true awfulness of what was seen there every day.\u00a0When I arrived\u00a0at 8am, a long queue already snaked out into the car park. People waited all day, most with HIV\/AIDS related complications. The children\u2019s ward was full.\u00a0 About 10 children had spent more time in the hospital than at home. Many had not been tested for HIV but the clinical signs spoke for themselves.<\/p>\n
The children were wonderful; we made lots of young friends! One little boy seemed no longer than my stethoscope even though he was 5 years old. He was on oxygen, had spoon-like clubbed blue fingers and a barrel chest. He was taking anti-TB and heart failure medication. Despite his clinical condition he was leader of the gang and had the loudest laugh! He had been treated for TB several times but hadn\u2019t improved.\u00a0 He was HIV positive and wasn\u2019t going to survive the next year. \u201cYou could start him on ARVs,\u201d we piped up. The suggestion was greeted with total misbelief that a child in such a state could ever survive.<\/p>\n
Our mission was obvious: to build confidence, to teach about paediatric HIV care and how to practically use ARVs. We led workshops, tasted the medication with the staff, and reviewed the South African guidelines. Our parting shot was: \u201cwe\u2019ll be back in 6 months.\u201d<\/p>\n
6 months later we arrived back on the ward. Where was he? Having started ARVs, our young friend was out of oxygen and running round the ward, giving orders and organising games with his mates. The doctor and the nurses had a skip in their heel that we didn\u2019t see the first time we were there.<\/p>\n
We visited Tayler Bequest every 6 months for 2 years until we realised we were no longer useful. Pearl and Graham, our B&B owners, gave us free board and lodgings. They introduced us, and we introduced the hospital, to Jenny, director at the local children\u2019s home. A whole system grew: house parents at the children\u2019s home were trained to give ARVs to the children, and a step-down facility to monitor children already on ARVs was created by the local community.<\/p>\n
In March 2009 we touched base again. The children on the hospital ward had gone home. The staff at the hospital have become experts in using the treatment – the children\u2019s ward is half empty and the ward doctor has been promoted to hospital director. It might be clich\u00e9d but it feels like a miracle.\u00a0 It\u2019s a success story that other health care sites have not reached yet. Now we want these staff to volunteer for CHIVA Africa to help the others!<\/p>\n
And whatever happened to our young friend?\u00a0 Steps are in place for his potential adoption into the USA. It\u2019s an amazing story and the best thing is that it\u2019s completely true.<\/p>\n
Colin Ball<\/strong>\u00a0is a consultant paediatrician at King\u2019s College Hospital, London. He has been volunteering with CHIVA Africa since its inception in 2006 and co-coordinates the doctors<\/em> group.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Our story starts in March 2006. Tayler Bequest Hospital is a beautiful looking building with a Cape Dutch exterior that concealed the true awfulness of what was seen there every day.\u00a0When I arrived\u00a0at 8am, a long queue already snaked out into the car park. People waited all day, most with HIV\/AIDS related complications. The children\u2019s […]<\/p>\n