Sergina’s Story – The following story is from Renée Valach who serves as the medical director at Bongolo Hospital in Gabon.
Sergina is a 2‑year‑old who came to us right around the New Year with cerebral malaria, a severe form of malaria that affects the brain. When she arrived, she was unconscious and having seizures, and her blood sugar was dangerously low. We treated her seizures, corrected her blood sugar, and started malaria treatment right away. She was so anemic that she needed three blood transfusions before her blood counts finally stabilized.
Even with this care, Sergina didn’t wake up at first. Because she couldn’t eat while unconscious, we fed her through a tube to keep her strong. Her mother and grandmother stayed faithfully by her side every day, believing she would open her eyes again. After several long weeks, she finally did, a moment everyone had been hoping for. At first, she still couldn’t move or eat on her own. But slowly, day by day, she began to move her arms and legs. By the time she left the hospital nearly a month later, she was able to eat and speak again.
When it came time for discharge, her family didn’t have enough money to cover the hospital bill, and I was grateful we could use our Benevolent Fund to help. After everything Sergina fought through, seeing her go home awake and recovering felt like something truly worth celebrating.
