Thank you for your hospitality and education you instilled in me. Before I used to get sick and was hospitalized every week. Now I know how to manage sickle cell with food, hydration. You have provided NHIF which allows me to access medicines. You provide us with transport and food for our clinic day meetings. And helped create income generating activities that gets us money to sustain us.

Early detection is a challenge because there is still a lack of awareness about SCD. In Taita-Taveta county we leaders are yet to sufficiently prioritize sickle cell. To ensure prioritization we need data to allow us to allocate proper funding to this issue. And devolve health services further down to community and primary health units to ensure accessibility of health services. This is what ASCO is working towards.

My 7year old daughter has sickle cell and it’s been a very bumpy ride as a mother. I have experienced a lot so far. Now, she has the best medicine. She has not had severe crisis since 2021 February. I’m so happy she’s better because when she’s doing well so am I. Thanks for the support I get from my fellow parents and the support of ASCO for paying for our NHIF that enabled me to us daily treatment for my daughter.

Through ASCOs advocacy efforts the county government department of health services has made available sickle cell essential medicines in its tertiary level hospitals. We have capacity built healthcare workers to manage and provide acute care for sickle cell complications. We still need more resource and financial investment to strengthen systems and have sustained advocacy for sickle cell.