Hopewell Ukpebor writes that a 40-year-old man from Anambra State is in need of an urgent kidney transplant to stay alive
A few months ago, there was nothing to suggest that Mr. Chika Ogwili, a
boisterous and easy going young man from Issieke in Ihiala local
government of Anambra state, was struggling with a life threatening
ailment, as he was full of optimism for the future. Now, 40 year old
Chika’s life hangs in the balance, and he is in need of an urgent kidney
transplant to ensure that his dreams for the future do not just pine
away.
Before August of this year, Chika was a bubbly gentleman working hard to make a decent living and there was nothing to indicate that a medical condition had been loitering around him for a long time. One which eventually manifested a few weeks ago and has confined him to the hospital bed, where he has been receiving routine and maintenance haemodialysis twice a week.
Chika has been diagnosed with Chronic Kidney disease and needs to have a kidney transplant in India which costs N7.5 million, in order to help save his life.
As the first child of a family of five, Chika has high hopes placed on him. Before he became bed-ridden, he worked as a driver for Harmony foam in Umuahia, before getting a job in Abuja as a technician at EMMACOOL, where he barely earned enough to take care of his immediate needs and that of his family.
While things have not exactly worked out as planned for him, he still burns with an uncommon optimism that things will turn out well. That hope however appeared to have hit the rocks in early August when Chika started noticing symptoms of an illness he could not explain.
At first, it seemed like malaria, and Chika was prompted to quickly visit a pharmacy to nip it in the bud, but that did not stop the illness from growing further. Soon enough, Chika started throwing up regularly especially while brushing his teeth, and later started having severe difficulty in breathing, which degenerated into nose bleeding, while he also noticed that his legs began to swell and he was always dizzy.
It was at this point that Chika hit the panic button and visited the Okwe community health centre in Umuahia, Anambra state to seek medical help.
While there, he was diagnosed to have Hypertension. However, with his condition still deteriorating and the health centre not possessing the required equipment to carry out a full treatment. Chika, with the help of his family sauntered into Abuja, where he was first admitted at Kubwa general hospital, before he was later referred to National Hospital, Abuja to see a nephrologist.
It was at the National Hospital that he was diagnosed by the Chief consultant at the hospital, and since then has been visiting the hospital twice in a week.
According to Ada Igwilo, a sibling to Chika, ‘’it was when we went there to the National hospital, the consultant told us the problem and also said that a transplant will be needed because the kidney problem is chronic, since then he has been on haemodialysis which I have been paying for worth ninety thousand naira for a session, and it Is really eating deep into our finances because right now I am broke, and I don’t know where to turn to’’, she said.
That arrangement however got complicated after Chika missed one of his hospital visits, which was usually on Mondays and Thursdays, and his appointments was pegged back to just one a week. To keep up with his treatment, Chika’s family have had to visit Zenith medical and kidney centre, where another round of tests were carried out on him.
In Chika’s medical report, Dr. Kareem, the consultant physician and nephrologists of Zenith hospital, said ‘’he is presently on routine and maintenance thrice weekly haemodialysis as well as twice weekly subcutaneous erythropoietin and weekly iron sucrose and other drugs.
He is hypertensive and his case is being managed as a case of chronic kidney disease secondary to chronic Glomerunophrytis. He will benefit from a kidney transplant which carries a better outcome in terms of life expectancy and costs about N7.5 million’’, the doctor said.
This sum of money has only added more sorrow to Chika and his family, as the purse has run dry after spending so much on his weekly dialysis which has been sponsored by his sister since he started the treatment, while his parents are only low income earners unable to foot such a heavy bill.
To make matters worse, Chika was sacked from his work place late last month and has been struggling to make ends meet ever since. The situation has thrown him into deep pains as he struggles to come to terms with the present predicament, one that will cost him his life if help does not come soon.
Pleading with Nigerians, Chika who barely managed to speak in an emotionally laden tone said, ‘’I am pleading with everyone out there to assist me in raising this money. There is nothing too small or too big. I would sincerely appreciate your help.
‘’Do not look at the fact that you do not know me, because giving is not about that, it is about helping people in need, regardless of the situation. If you know the value of brotherhood, then you will realize that we are all one, whether you know the person or not, and I am sure that as you help, God will repay you in hundred folds.
‘’It is my prayer today that God will not allow such predicaments befall you or your family, and even as you help you will never lack. I beseech all Nigerians to come to my aid. Do not let me die. My family has suffered enough because of my illness, and they don’t have anything anymore to fund my hospital bills much less sponsor the kidney transplant. This is why I am calling on everyone to come to my rescue, since we have only been able to raise a hundred thousand naira. I pray God answers all your prayers too’’.
Chika said Good Samaritans can help rescue him from untimely death by paying into the following bank account: CHIKA IGWILO ECOBANK PLC, 4232038324. He can be contacted through his mobile numbers: 08034940624, 08088267959 and 08034040624
This is an e-mail from Leaders & Company Limited, publishers of THISDAY title newspapers and magazines and Arise Media UK Limited - the global style, culture and communications group. Its contents are confidential to the intended recipient. If you are not the intended recipient, be advised that you have received this e-mail in error and that any use, dissemination, forwarding, printing or copying of this e-mail is strictly prohibited and may not be disclosed to or used by anyone other than its intended recipient, nor may it be copied in any way. If received in error please email a reply to the sender, then delete it from your system. Although this e-mail has been scanned for viruses, Leaders & Company Limited and Arise Media UK Limited shall not accept any responsibility for viruses and it is your responsibility to scan any attachments.
0 comments:
Post a Comment