All of us are facing the uncertainty that has arisen from the war in the Middle East and the knock-on effects it is having around the world. Luckily we live in a country that is able to somewhat ease the burden on its citizens, however, the old folk of Zimbabwe have no such safety net as you will see from the sad story of Sylvia below.
Thankfully, through the generosity and kindness of our donors, ZANE is still able to come alongside these elderly people and give them some dignity and care at the end of their lives. If you are already a donor, we thank you – if you would like to become one, please click on the link below – any amount, however big or small, is translated into loving care for each and every individual who ZANE supports.
Sylvia
Two weeks ago, one of the ZANE helpers, Julie was going away on leave and asked us to keep an eye on Sylvia who is 82. She has lived in an old block of flats in Harare, for many years. The lift has not worked in that building for as long as we have known her and there are 110 steps to Sylvia’s flat.
We went to visit Sylvia and found her to be in a very sorry state, she could barely walk to the toilet let alone manage the steps. She had fallen down twice in her flat as she was so unsteady on her feet. She is losing her sight and I had bought her some Ocuvite eye drops which are $25 a bottle but they do slow down the macular degeneration of the retina so are essential medication. She cannot afford to pay for this. ZANE has been giving her $100 per month for years. We spoke to her about moving but she absolutely refused.
A couple of weeks later Julie again went to visit her and this time found her lying in a bed soaked in urine, she could no longer get to the toilet and her legs were swollen and very blue in colour. Julie rang me in a panic last Friday afternoon saying she needed to move Sylvia and at last she had agreed. There is no running water in her flat, or if there is, it does not reach the 5th floor so Sylvia was filthy, as was the flat.
I arranged for Matron to admit her into one of the frail care complexes and then went to EMRAS and paid for an ambulance to collect Sylvia. Finally, she arrived at frail care at about 7pm on Friday evening to be met by Matron – they promptly gave her a bath and hair wash (her first in over a year). The doctor saw her on Saturday morning and has ordered all sorts of tests in order to make a diagnosis. She is already much better, walking again but totally incontinent.
Obviously she is going to cost us a great deal of money but we have a new donor visiting Zimbabwe next month and I hope he might agree to take on some of Sylvia’s expenses. Meanwhile I have told Matron we will cover her costs and we are hoping and praying that we can stretch our budget until someone comes to our aid.
Such a sad story of a lonely little person who has never had children and was too proud to ask for help. At least we have brought some dignity back into her life and she will now be well looked after.
* Names and images may have been changed for privacy reasons
If you are already a ZANE donor, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. If you are not a donor but would like to be, please follow the link below and know that every donation, however big or small, goes directly to where it is most needed. If you would like to help but can’t donate, please join the ZANE family and ‘like’ or ‘share’ our posts or write us a Google review – every positive step helps spread the word about the life changing work ZANE does.
Thank you – Nicky Passaportis ZANE Australia
Please donate to support pensioners struggling to survive in Zimbabwe
Any assistance is greatly appreciated and goes a long way to giving our pensioners a better quality of life and lift the pressure of money worries which is very debilitating emotionally.
(Donations made to ZANE in Australia, are tax-deductible)