This Project Needs Further Funding

Introduction: FOMO has over a number of years endeavored to establish a rural out reach programme to meet the desperate needs of communities without even basic health care. The stumbling block is not our infrastructure or our ability, but as we are all aware health care is expensive. FOMO is committed to provide food security, education and a lot more to over 5000 children and has only been able to be reactive towards general medical care.

We have made some progress with the provision of a First Aid Training Programme and the completion of the FORU last year, but we now need a injection of funds to take the next step..................

Its difficult to outline simply what this program will mean to the community, but think about all the times you have needed medical care, be it doctor, off the shelf medicine, or specialist help. Now imagine life without these basic needs. Personally I would have been dead at the age of 3! and if you survived what would life be like without the occupational pain killing tablet.

The following text outlines our initial plans and its a little like the problem of the chicken and egg. We can't fully open the FORU until we are registered with the health authority and we can't register until we had a building and clinic staff. We have the building, but to take the next step we need funds for the clinical staff and running cost.

Everyone can help with this by donating to the our health for all fund, and it will save lives and relieve suffering.

FORU's main objectives are to:

Ensure that each of the FOMO centres are capable of meeting the parental responsibility in terms of First Aid and basic health care.

• Provide access to, and meet the costs of, professional health care via the FOMO clinic and National hospital facilities.
• Provide access to health care information.
• Provide education and counseling to the children and guardians
• Provide training in first aid and basic health care.
• Provide support for home care patients.
• Provide access to the HIV/Aids treatment programme
• Provide accommodation for HIV/Aids children during the drug stabilization period.
  

The basic proposal falls into three main categories.

• Outreach Unit Clinic
• First Aid Education
• Preventative Care
  
  
  

The FORU Clinic will provide normal surgery and testing facilities, but also incorporate a children's accommodation facility.

Children identified as having HIV/Aids will be housed in the accommodation facility until their condition has stabilized sufficiently for them to return to their guardians. While the children are in the unit, the FORU team will assess the children's home situation, provide education and support to the guardians relative to the continuing care of the children.

The FORU Team will provide follow up care, education and counseling to the children and guardians on a long term continuing basis.

The FORU Team will liaise and work with national and local health care providers (Government, Local hospitals, Social Services, NGO's and local Clinics) to ensure FOMO's contribution to the general health care provision is being effectively and efficiently administered.

Note: In Addition each new purpose built FOMO centre has a first aid room, with sufficient room to hold daily clinics.

Picture (above) of FORU Building at Nkonya Village, Mulanje (Refurbished and extended 2008)

First Aid Education: FORU team ensures that each FOMO centre is capable of meeting the parental responsibility in terms of basic health care, (First Aid +). The FORU Team responsibilities cover delivery of health training to FOMO centre matrons, playschool teachers, and older children.

The scope of the training will encompass the identification and treatment of common conditions, (Basic first aid, preventative care and personal hygiene). The centre matron and playschool teachers to be empowered with authority, understanding, knowledge to refer patient with conditions outside the normal scope of basic first aid to the FORU Clinic for further assessment and or treatment.

Centre Matrons provide patients hospital follow-up after care to ensure the prescribed treatments are being followed. (This would normally exclude HIV/Aids and specialist care which would fall under the remit of the FORU Clinic)

Note: Many of the treatments require a balanced diet, or at least more than one meal a day, provision is to be made to meet these needs for the treatment to be effective.

Preventative Care: The FORU team and centre matrons to pass on the knowledge they have gained to the general population and encourage the children to come to the centres for education and treatment.

Plan of FOMO Outreach Unit Clinic (Nkonya Village, Mulanje)

Determined to make the idea of FOMO a reality, Mary contacted relatives and friends who over the years had been helping many orphaned children. From this small beginning FOMO became a reality and aims to provide and enhance the health, education, food security, meet the basic human needs and develop the potential of all the needy and orphaned children of Mulanje.

The sad reality is that there are too many children in need of help and too few local families that can afford to help. Though there are many high profile agencies within Malawi they seem unable to address the immediate, local, one to one help, which FOMO is committed to provide.

From small beginnings FOMO has grown and now looks after over 5000 through a network of 13 centres covering about 85 villages in Mulanje district of Malawi.

FOMO is seen as a success by the children, local committees and officers, (DC, TA's, Police, health workers, social services etc), FOMO works by assisting and working with the communities using the traditional values and structures that have served the population in what can only be describes as better time.

FOMO in the UK is run by a small board of volunteer trustees whose main work is to raise funds and awareness of the children's situation. Additionally the FOMO UK is responsible for controlling these funds, identifying and facilitating the needs of FOMO Mulanje.

FOMO Mulanje's day to day activities are run by a small number of employees, project officer, accountant, playschool teacher, matron plus round 200 local volunteers, that help out with the general day to day functions, cooking, sport, gardening club, bees, chickens, choir etc. Each of the 13 centers has a locally elected volunteer committee who are responsible for the day to day running of their centre and they are also responsible for identifying and assessing children in need.

The bridge between FOMO UK and FOMO Mulanje is through our founder Mary, who is in a special position in that she understands Malawi, speaks the language, has a clear view of the injustices and knows how to motivate the local population, and generally is an inspiration and example to us all.

With an eye on the future FOMO, operates 13 playschools, a driving school, a computer school, a tailoring school/outlet and are seeking funds for a skills centre.