Luzi Orphan Care Organization Luzi Orphan Care Organization was founded in 1999 in the village of Mitunda, Malawi. In response to the spread of HIV/AIDS across Southern Africa, communities in areas badly affected by the virus formed local grassroots organizations to meet the needs of the sick in their communities and the ever-growing population of orphaned children. Luzi is one such organization, providing care to a population of approximately 150,000 people living in 395 villages surrounding Mitunda. Luzi’s volunteers, many of whom are HIV positive themselves, provide basic care and treatment for those living with the virus and other chronic illnesses. Additionally, Luzi offers a host of services for orphaned and vulnerable children in the community. Since its inception, Luzi has earned the trust of both local communities and international NGOs, such as UNICEF and the Pendulum Project, who provide annual funding. The Project Our project, LuziCare, seeks to improve Luzi’s capacity to provide home-based care for people living with HIV/AIDS and other chronic illnesses in communities the organization serves. We also look to enhance the sustainability of its programs. As many as 20,000 individuals live with HIV/AIDS in Luzi’s operational area. However, the organization has the resources to care for only 115 HIV/AIDS patients. Furthermore, many have to travel up to 50 kilometers to reach hospitals in the nearby city of Lilongwe; Luzi has only 4 aging bicycles to facilitate this trek. At local clinics care is substandard, antibiotics are scarce, and there is no electricity. Definitive care simply does not exist. The situation is dire, and Luzi’s resources are minimal. The Formula LuziCare aims at helping Luzi Orphan Care Organization adequately address the critical needs of the people it serves. Our project is based on a three-fold formula: First, LuziCare will provide formal training in home-based care methods approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) to Luzi’s untrained volunteer community health workers. Training will be performed by NAPHAM and Paradiso House Home-Based Care, two local organizations with special expertise in home-based care techniques. The training will equip Luzi’s volunteers with a critical skill set. They will be able to properly administer basic medical care and drug treatment at home in accordance with WHO standards. Additionally, they will be able to provide essential preventative care. The training will also include instruction in counseling and HIV/AIDS prevention so that volunteers will be equipped to provide often overlooked counseling to the ill and their families and promote general HIV/AIDS awareness and testing. Second, LuziCare will purchase new ambulance bicycles. Each bicycle will be equipped with a medical kit and padded stretcher cart. The bicycles will serve as mobile care clinics. Equipped with bicycles, the volunteer community health workers will gain unprecedented access to people in need living throughout Luzi’s large operational area. Additionally, the stretcher carts will allow Luzi volunteers to transport those in serious need of medical attention to local clinics in Mitundu and Mzimba. Finally, LuziCare will fund and initiate an agricultural project to ensure the sustainability of Luzi’s enhanced home-based care network. Village authorities have donated a half-acre plot of land to Luzi Orphan Care Organization. LuziCare will make a contribution for the purchase of fertilizer and cassava root, and the cassava will be seeded, cultivated, and harvested by Luzi staff. The proposed agricultural project will help ensure the sustainability of Luzi Orphan Care Organization’s expanded home-based care program. The harvested crop could fetch as much as $1,000 at market annually, and the revenue generated will create a source of funds to maintain the bicycles, stock the medical kits, and provide stipends for the volunteer community health workers. Currently, funding for Luzi’s activities is erratic. The project volunteers contribute 100 Kwacha (71 cents) monthly to sustain Luzi’s programs. Pictured below is an ambulance bicycle similar to those which we will be purchasing for Luzi Orphan Care Organization. www.malawimacs.org It is our hope that LuziCare’s three-fold formula will allow Luzi Orphan Care Organization to effectively and efficiently provide healthcare to a larger population in a sustainable manner. We have to enlisted the support of NGOs and non-profits already working in Malawi to ensure the effectiveness of our project.
