Visit to Africa inspires NHS Lothian staff

Published on Monday 29 June 2009 09:59

A GROUP of occupational therapists who recently worked in Africa have raised money through a ceilidh following their moving visit.

The NHS Lothian workers said what they saw in Uganda was so powerful that they wanted to continue to help.

As a result, the event took place earlier this month, with cash going straight back to the impoverished country to help train native occupational therapists.

Carolyn Atkinson, who organised the ceilidh, said: "The image that struck me most strongly during my time in Uganda is of the moment my colleague Francis picked up a nine-month-old child and sat her in a chair.

"She had been brain-damaged at birth and left deaf, blind and with learning difficulties.

"Disabled children are often left lying all day, with minimum stimulation and little interaction with their family and environment. By the simple act of providing a means by which this little girl could sit up, Francis had given her a face, she became part of the group. Such a simple but powerful act."