Editorial
The rains have come, at least, in the grand South of Cameroon, and the cloud of dust have reduced, however, the atmosphere is still very misty due to the harmattan. Planting and sowing are the major activities for every peasant or commercial farmer. Though it is fresher in the grass field, the weather is more humid in the forest zones while dry heat persists in the grand north. Given that cholera is classified as a water-borne disease, its outbreak in the SW Region of Cameroon could have been elsewhere in the Country because access to portable water is restricted everywhere across the Country. While those who have standard borehole may be on the advantage, communities that depend on catchment water source are more endangered because the water basin is said to go lower after the first rains. In fact, the scarcity is evident.
Sr. Budzee Appolonia, CEO TSSF Health Services
All the 21 health services where the TSSF work are currently carrying out intensive sensitization and provision of material to bolster the global fight against the COVID-19 in the respective communities. Within the first half of 2022, the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) accepted to stretch the impact of the assistance to all these 21 communities: Shisong, Njinikom, Ntasin, Bafut, Douala, Mayo Darle, Tatum, Djottin, Wum, Bali, FuliKom, Baham, Edea, Gobo, Dzigilao, Ako, Tabenken, Mbetta, Pitoa, Ak– waya and Doume Abong Mbang.
Preventive measures for health workers and for other persons identified as more vulnerable in the face of the COVID-19 is our primary concern in this joint project. Through our tripled efforts, we hope that these communities can really feel our support and solidarity—improve their knowledge of the pandemic, improve on their practice of hygiene and sanitation, and receive some basic protective material. The support from Leuven University Medical Cooperation and Solidarity (LUMOS) and Missionszentrale der Franziskaner (MZF) in the past was of great service especially in Shisong and Njinikom Hospitals, COVID-19 treatment centers. As vanguards of health delivery in our local communities, we remain committed to the prevention and management of the COVID-19 and other life-threatening conditions. Special
thanks to GIZ and Lawong Education and Health Alliance (LEHA).
The Tertiary Sisters 0f St. Francis run two social facilities in Akwaya Village in the Manyu Division of the South West Region of Cameroon. Akwaya, a beautiful village with its people, but remote in the sense of poor access to the rest of the world. From other parts of Cameroon, Akwaya is reached mainly through Ekok a Vilage in Nigeria. I was posted to Akwaya Health Center in September 2021, and I am working hard to connect Akwaya to the rest of the world, and hope to reverse the logical consequences of the war on this pretty village: most inhabitants are displaced to Nigeria, most people do not realize the importance and so do not utilize the health facility; consequently, the Health Center is not sustainable, but needs external subsidies. Some are questioning for how long the TSSF continue to struggle to keep the doors of this Health Center opened, at what cost, and for whom? While the efforts of Cameroon’s Ministry of Public Health to maintain its Health Post in Akwaya are commendable, the Tertiary Sisters of St. Francis remain committed to doing their part to offer healthcare within acceptable standards for the people.
However, the elite and people of good will, especially those of the Manyu origin, could urgently consider supporting the facility towards sustainability. You could assist by enrolling the inhabitants (families, friends) in one of the health insurance schemes like the Bamenda Ecclesiastical Province Health Assistance (BEPHA), subsidizing the cost of treatment for a certain groups of people, donating medication and medical equipment and consumables…. Please call the Health Direction Office for details.
POTENTIALS OF ST. PADRE PIO ANNEX AT MAMBANDA—DOUALA
St. Padre Pio Hospital Douala, by God’s grace, has continued to impress the population of Douala with their variety of services: gynaecology, paediatric, dentistry, neonatology, general consultation, mother and child and excellent diagnostic laboratories. The energy is from both ways: the prayers of St. Padre Pio and the caring spirit of the staff of the Hospital!
The creation of the branch of the Hospital at Mambanda (Bonaberi) is a fruit worthy of recognition. Within the context of a Holy Mass, the facility was opened on February 2, 2022, highly welcome by the Parishioners of Notre Dame du Rosaire and all in the neighbourhood. The Parish Priest, Fr. Daniel Noel Dongmo, in his sermon, lauded the Tertiary Sisters for their developmental initiative and urged all to embark on a mindset of progress. The Provincial Superior, Sr. Gloria Wirba, on her part, stressing the story of TSSF presence at Mambanda, claimed vehemently that God had personally worked out the establishment of the health facility there. She equally wished that the presence of the Sisters in the neighbourhood can truly be a religious presence and the health service be an “enrichment to the lives of the mothers, fathers and children whom we are called to serve and pray for”.
Sr. Therese Martin Muala, Matron
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