Anthony's Story

Anthony joined Watsi on June 25th, 2013. Eight years ago, Anthony joined our Universal Fund, supporting life-changing treatments for a new Watsi patient every month. Anthony's most recent donation traveled 8,500 miles to support David, a 24-year-old male from Kenya, to fund a surgery to fix his leg and avoid potential amputation.

Impact

Anthony has funded healthcare for 104 patients in 12 countries.

patients you have funded

David is a 24-year-old male from Kenya. He is the last born in a family of four children raised by his mother. He works at a timber workshop near his home. In June 2020, David was involved in an accident where he was hit from the side by a motorbike. He was taken to the nearest public hospital and received emergency care. An x-ray revealed that he had an open right tibia fracture that needed surgery. Following his initial surgery, he has since had several additional surgeries due to the severity of the injury. In October 2022, he was referred to the care center, AIC Kijabe Hospital, run by our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare (AMH), for specialized review and care. His doctors quickly realized that he still walks with a limp, and his ankle is stiff with bloody discharge from the incision site. His doctors determined that a deeper examination was needed, and he ended up having a hardware removal surgery. However, the region where the fracture occurred is still severely infected, and he risks losing his right leg due to the infection. The doctors have recommended an additional procedure to remedy the remaining issues and clean the infection. Fortunately, AMH has scheduled David for a second-stage bone transport in hopes of avoiding amputation and helping him walk again. AMH is requesting $1,500 to fund the procedure and provide for David's post-operative care. David says, “I feel exhausted and worried. I am unable to walk despite having several surgeries. I hope this surgery [helps] to save my leg.”

51%funded
$766raised
$734to go

Saoly is a 33-year-old former garment factory worker from Cambodia. He is from the Kampong Speu province, and married with two children. His wife makes and sells traditional Khmer cakes at the local market. His children are four and seven years of age. Since an accident, he has been home and likes to listen to the news, watch TV, and play with his children. In March 2020, he was in a motorcycle collision with a truck and fell on his left shoulder on the pavement. This caused paralysis of his left shoulder and arm. He has been diagnosed with a brachial plexus injury on his left side. The brachial plexus is a nerve network that transmits signals from the spine to the shoulder, arm, and hand. Injuries to this nerve network can result in loss of function and sensation. In August 2020, he had a surgical nerve graft, which allowed him to successfully bend his elbow, but he still cannot move his shoulder or his fingers. He cannot work, feels phantom pain in his arm, and is very depressed he cannot support his family and his wife has to work hard. Saoly traveled to our medical partner's care center to receive treatment. This is the only center in the whole country where this treatment is available. On December 1st, he will undergo a brachial plexus repair surgery. After recovery, he hopes that he will be able to move his shoulder, use his hand, and work again to support his family. Our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, is requesting $709 to fund this procedure. Saoly said: "I hope this surgery will help me to use my arm again. I would like to work in a factory again to support my family."

29%funded
$207raised
$502to go

Titus is the eldest son in a family of four. He shared his life's story with us: sometime back, his father was involved in a fatal argument with a neighbor, and went to prison. Titus' family became homeless as a result of this incident, and Titus could not stay in school after 8th grade due to financial difficulties. Recently, he has been working getting jobs near his home and sometimes he works at construction sites in order to earn a living. His jobs enable him to get his daily basic needs and be able to pay for his rent. Generally, Titus’ life is hard, and it is difficult for him to makes ends meet. Titus had a burn accident and his relatives rushed him to the hospital for treatment of severe burns on his hand and superficial burns on his chest and face. He has been on a daily dressing regime to lower the risk of infection and his doctor has determined that he needs a skin graft surgery in order to replace the lost skin and restore function of his right upper limb and forearm. Titus is requesting to be discharged home from the hospital without further treatment because he does not want the bill to accumulate as it will be hard to pay. However, it is critical for him to have the surgery, so that he can have the full use of his right arm. He needs $1,089 to pay for the surgery. Titus says, "Life has really been hard for me: when a problem ends, another one begins. I am so desperate, but I will not lose hope because someday things will be well. I kindly ask for your help to get well so that I may be able to continue working in order to change my current state.”

$1,089raised
Fully funded

Veasna is a hardworking 42-year-old farmer and construction worker from Cambodia. He has two sons and two daughters, all of whom are students in public schools. To support their family, Veasna works as a small-scale farmer, and his wife sells vegetables at the local market. Veasna works construction jobs during the off-season to supplement their family's income. In his free time, he enjoys exercising, visiting his friends, and helping his wife with housework. Three years ago, Veasna underwent back surgery for sciatic pain, which led to a reduction in sensation in his feet. He stepped on a hot brick at work two years later and severely burned his left heel. Despite taking antibiotics, this wound has remained unhealed. The wound is currently producing discharge, which he shares is both unpleasant and painful. He is unable to walk on his left foot, preventing him from working. Veasna's wife now provides their family's sole income, and he shares that they are facing difficulty feeding their children and keeping them in school. When Veasna learned about our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC), he traveled for two hours seeking treatment. On August 11th, surgeons at CSC will perform an excision of dead skin and a sural skin flap procedure to heal his wound and help him walk again. Now, he needs help funding this $673 procedure. Veasna shares, "I hope after surgery my foot will heal soon with no infection. I am hopeful I can walk without pain and can return to work to support my family."

$673raised
Fully funded