#LifeLine2025
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A Hope for All Orphans
#LifeLine – Health Checks Initiatives for Orphanages
Your donations support vital health checks in underserved communities, helping us mobilize medical experts to provide essential exams and treatments for malaria, malnutrition, tuberculosis, respiratory infections, and measles in orphanages across Myanmar and countries that we serve.
Objective:
The #LifeLine – Health Checks Initiatives for Orphanages program, under the auspices of the Mary K. Yap Foundation, has set forth a comprehensive strategy with a twofold objective to ensure the well-being of orphanages throughout Myanmar. The primary aim is to establish a year-round rotation system, facilitating regular visits to various orphanages across the country. This approach will ensure that a consistent and sustainable provision of healthcare services is maintained, focusing on the specific needs of each institution. Additionally, the program seeks to introduce and expand vaccination services for Myanmar’s orphan communities, enhancing their overall health and protection from preventable diseases.
In its inaugural phase, the program’s primary focus is administering TB vaccinations to the first batch of 10 orphanages strategically located in the remote northern border regions, predominantly within the Mandalay Region. This targeted effort will directly benefit approximately 800 orphaned children residing in these areas, addressing a pressing health concern and taking a significant step towards safeguarding the health and future of the vulnerable young population in these regions. As the initiative progresses, the #LifeLine – Health Checks program aims to scale up its efforts, extend its reach, and diversify its services to cater to the evolving healthcare needs of orphanages throughout Myanmar.
Challenge:
Despite significant strides in Myanmar’s efforts to control tuberculosis (TB) over the last three decades, the country grapples with profound challenges in combatting this persistent public health menace. Myanmar finds itself among the WHO’s list of 30 nations grappling with the heaviest TB burden worldwide, as of the 2020 report. Alarmingly, the reported number of cases is twice the regional average and three times the global average, underscoring the scale of the challenge at hand.
Compounding this issue, a profound lack of awareness pervades the local communities, leaving them largely uninformed about the disease. Access to healthcare services is often limited, and communities frequently exhibit suboptimal health-seeking behaviors. Consequently, a substantial portion of TB cases remains concealed, undiagnosed, and untreated, perpetuating the cycle of TB transmission, especially in underprivileged regions. These challenges are further exacerbated by a dearth of education and understanding regarding the severe long-term consequences of untreated TB, leading to discrimination against individuals afflicted with the disease and rendering community-level infection control a formidable task.
Individuals who manifest TB symptoms resort to self-medication and traditional healers or practitioners rather than seeking professional medical care. Even when their condition deteriorates, barriers like poverty, limited awareness, and inadequate transportation options impede access to essential healthcare services. For those who do commence treatment, the requirement for regular visits to health centers to acquire medications results in suboptimal treatment adherence and alarmingly high rates of patients being lost to follow-up, compounding the challenges in addressing TB effectively on the ground.
Support Our Work
Our Plan of Action:
To address these challenges in the TB response, the #LifeLine project, funded by the Mary K. Yap Foundation in collaboration with our local private physicians and in partnership with the International Tuberculosis Foundation and Myanmar National Tuberculosis Program (NTP) to work with young children from orphan communities actively. The goal is to treat them effectively per the WHO End TB Strategy.
We embark on working with orphanages registered with the Foundation during the first year of the commencement of the #LifeLine project. Subsequent years will target every orphanage in the country regardless of location. Vulnerable communities outside our Yangon and Mandalay bases will be our utmost priority. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese recommends us.
By graciously contributing, your donations directly support our vital health check initiatives aimed at undeserved communities, enabling us to mobilize medical experts from both local and global backgrounds, including dedicated doctors and compassionate nurses, who will administer crucial examinations and treatments for various health concerns starting with TB. These efforts are particularly impactful as they extend their benefits to orphanages across Myanmar, promoting improved health and well-being through access to essential medical care. The TB action plan, together with our medical professional partners, from 2024 to 2026 aims to improve TB prevention, detection, and control in Myanmar.
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