A treatment that makes the difference

Liella, 3, lives in Bukeye commune in Rutegama ADP, centre of Burundi, an ADP funded by World Vision Canada. When she was one year old, she became sick, and her health status worsened daily. What made it worse was that instead of taking her to hospital, her mother, Alice Niyuhire, carried her to a witch doctor that performed his rituals in vain.

When she resorted to taking her child to hospital under the pressure of health mobilisers, her child was found to be severely malnourished. Had it not been for World Vision’s Nutrition project, she would have passed away.

Alice is a young mother of 23 years who lives in a former residence of Burundi royal dynasty. It is a wonderful area with a good climate where the grass is green almost wth whole year. These good conditions contrast with the life for Liella, her three-year-old girl. She recently bounced back from an acute malnutrition; thanks to World Vision’s nutrition project.

“Have you ever seen a disease that takes away a skin of a person who is still alive? I believed that my child had been entered by an evil spirit,” Alice recounts.

When Alice’s daughter Liella was one year old, she became sick. She had no appetite and her swollen body started sweating and becoming covered with wounds all over. While laid on a bed, the bed sheets would take away some of her wounded skin.

“I even went to consult a witch doctor, but my child kept aching,” Alice says.

World Vision health mobilisers knew about Liella’s story and advised her to bring Liella to hospital.

Alice was scared by the life of her child that was worsening daily; she decided to carry her to a witch doctor nearby. World Vision health mobilisers in the locality knew about Liella’s story and went to advise her to bring Liella to hospital. Alice had despaired; her child’s life, in the hands of the witch doctor did not improve. She accepted to bring Liella to Muramvya hospital, a hospital supported with Ready to Use Food (RUF) by World Vision Burundi. Liella was found to be severely malnourished.

According to UNICEF, in Burundi nearly one million children under the age of five are chronically malnourished and 58 per cent of those children also suffer from stunted growth, while acute malnutrition levels have reached 6 per cent.

Malnutrition is a common disease in that household. Some of Alice’s in-laws suffered from it before she came to get married there.

Anne, Liella’s grandmother, explains that some of her children had suffered from a disease that had similar symptoms to that of Liella. She confesses to have consulted a witch doctor too.

“People misled me when some of my children fell sick. The witch doctor gave me an herbal powder which did not help my children at all. They were healed by a treatment they got at hospital,” she says. 

Her daughter in-law did not believe her when she told her that their child was suffering from a disease that could be treated at health facilities.

Because of the lack of enough health centres in Burundi, people have long depended on traditional healers.

Jean Bosco Ngendakumana, a health mobiliser in Bukeye zone says that is the reason why many people in the area still believe in witchcraft. For some parents, it is not easy to make them change their mind.

“Alice kept going to witch doctors even when her child was already admitted to hospital. For the second time we threatened her that we will ask the police to arrest her if she consults witch doctors again. She went back to hospital and stayed there until her child was well,” Jean Bosco explains.

He however finds that consulting witch doctors is progressively regressing due to sensitisations and interventions of NGOs like World Vision.

Roseline Iyimbabazi, a World Vision health coordinator in Rutegama Area Development Programme explains that Liella’s life was saved because of a joint effort between health mobilisers and World Vision. World Vision knew about Liella’s case, while WV staff was in the regular monitoring in health facilities and decided to follow up with it at home.

“We decided to make regular visits to the family and teach Liella’s mother how to prepare a nutritious food; we are satisfied by the way Alice cooperates,” Roseline says.

Liella’s mother is now putting into practice what she learned from World Vision Burundi volunteers and is sharing with the neighbourhood what she learned. Liella has now recovered; she is now a healthy and a lively little girl of three years of age.

“It is only God who decided to take her back; she had gone,” says Anne, her grandmother.