Rateel is a 10-month-old girl, who was born into a poor family that consists of 6 members. The whole family lives in a room that is not qualified for a normal life. Extreme family deprivation and poor hygiene have led to worsening of the condition of the newborn child. Rateel’s mother used all the primitive methods to treat her ten-month-old daughter, who had a severe fever, diarrhea, and lack of appetite, but her health was still worsening!
Unfortunately, At Tuhayta District Hospital was closed for a long time; for that reason, Building Foundation for Development (BFD), funded¬ by Yemen Humanitarian Fund (YHF), helped restore functionally the hospital, and when it was reopened, Rateel’s mother went to the hospital, in a final attempt to save the life of her daughter, who was not leaving her lap day and night. “At first, Rateel suffered from loss of appetite and a fever followed by weakness and wasting, and we did not know what her illness is or where to go since the hospital was situated in the front lines. When BFD rented another building, which is far from the conflict, we took Rateel for treatment, and her condition was diagnosed as acute malnutrition.” Rateel’s father said.
“Rateel was admitted to us on 20/9/2019, and the family was in a state of anxiety, and fear for their daughter (Rateel) whose health condition deteriorated. Anthropometric measurements were taken and it was found that she suffers from severe acute malnutrition with complications of fever, diarrhea, and loss of appetite.” Dr. Ayesha Jamal says. She adds, “There is no therapeutic feeding center in At Tuhayta District, and Rateel’s parents refused to refer her to (TFC) in Al Khawkhah District due to the poverty, as well as fear of mines scattered along the road of At Tuhayta which is one of the conflict areas; therefore, we treated her in At Tuhayta District Hospital to save her life.”
Rateel’s condition improved after a month of continuous supervision at (At Tuhayta District Hospital). Previously, she weighed only 3.7k and after receiving treatment and proper nutrition, the smile returned to her face. After all, she overcame the symptoms of malnutrition and raised her weight to the normal level (5.3k), and referred from SAM to MAM Treatment. “I did not feel as happy in my life as I did when my daughter started smiling and trying to sit and move, after a month of treatment.” Rateel’s mother stated.
