Yotkom Agricultural Project

Generous giving from Australia has made it possible for Yotkom Uganda to purchase a parcel of agricultural land  approximately 25 km from Kitgum .

Our vision since we were formed has been to seek ways to build self reliance and foster sustainability in our medical project .
Local income generation is a key to this.
The development of an agricultural project was something we dreamed of, which now, thanks to targeted donations, has become a reality. It is very exciting .

The land is 125 acres in size.
We have employed an experienced Ugandan agricultural advisor who will assist us raise over 130,000 eucalyptus seedlings in the next three months ready for planting out at the beginning of the rainy season in March 2019.

The nursery and clearing and planting activities will provide much needed employment to quite a number of local workers.

We are trusting for some significant harvests over the next few years , bringing in much needed funds to help keep our medical project viable into the future , asssisting us to continue providing affordable, accessible, high quality health services to Northern Uganda .

We have seen nearby eucalypts have reached head height in 5 months !
Great growing conditions !

Tuberculosis Management approval

The Yotkom Medical Centre has been reviewed and assessed by the Department of Health and been deemed to be a facility worthy of approval to identify TB patients and initiate Tuberculosis treatment using medications provided for free .
Tuberculosis is a major health problem in this community and there are increasing numbers of multi drug resistant cases .
There is a link between HIV /AIDS and Tuberculosis and it is likely that Yotkom will receive approval to be managing HIV patients , providing life saving medication for this condition.

Maternal and Child Health construction update

The construction supervisor from Australia, Phil, was recently in site with Andrew Wright to review progress on the new hospital wing.  Patrick is the Ugandan builder in charge of this project. The current estimated time for completion is March 2019

We have two large underground water tanks to collect rainwater from our roof

Inside, we are constructing reception counters and about to start tiling.

A container of hospital beds was also recently transported to our site from Kampala .

Working together to ensure transparency

Our team from Australia include Shirley Kampe, our Australian charity Treasurer.
She is spending time working with Faith and the other Ugandan administration team , especially on the Quickbooks billing and accounting package used at Yotkom Medical Centre .

Lynne Pemberton has also been helping with filing in the office.

Australians on the ground in Northern Uganda: November 2018

Over the next 6 weeks there will be several Australians spending time with our Ugandan colleagues at Yotkom Medical Centre.

On October 26th, Dr Andrew Wright will be travelling to Kitgum with Phil, an Australian builder who has been supervising the construction of the Maternal and Child Health facility .
Phil has made several visits to the site to work alongside  Patrick , our Ugandan builder and his construction team.
The facility is nearing completion with painting now having commenced and tiling about to start.
There has been a lot of digging of underground water catchment tanks.

On November 3 rd, Anne Wright, Shirley Kampe and Lynne Pemberton will travel together to Uganda from Australia.

Shirley Kampe is the Treasurer of Yotkom Uganda Ltd in Australia and will be working with the African administration team  to audit the financial records on Quickbooks. An end of year financial statement for  Yotkom in Uganda will be prepared, suitable for submission to the Ugandan taxation department.   This will also be useful for accountability and transparency in Australia so that donors can see clearly our financial expenditures.

Lynne Pemberton will be taking a particular interest in working alongside our Yotkom chaplain, Rev Concy Amigo and encouraging her in her work. She will also be building closer relationships and contributing to team education and mentoring.

Anne Wright will be spending much of her time reviewing , monitoring and evaluating policies and procedures , especially in the operating theatre, with the sterilisation and  vaccination process being of particular concern . Her past experience working in an Australian General Practice on the accreditation process is being put to good use.

Anne, Shirley and Lynne are all directors on the board of management of the Yotkom charity in Australia so we thank them for their willingness to be with the Ugandan team for these weeks and gain a better understanding of the project as well as making some very valuable contributions to the work being done .

In mid November, Richard Nicholls will be joining us from Western Australia.

Richard (who has a background in law, business administration and disaster management ) and his wife Denise ( a midwife)  are looking at ways they can contribute to the work of Yotkom Uganda in 2019.

Pat and Maree Holdsworth at YOTKOM MEDICAL CENTRE

We are thankful for Pat and Maree who are  spending.  four weeks at the Yotkom Medical Centre.

In Australia they are key board members within our Yotkom organisation and over many years have had a lot of experience working in Africa and especially in Northern Uganda.

During these next few weeks , they will be seeking to encourage and mentor our Ugandan team and to monitor and observe areas where we can improve our quality of health care provision to the community.

Here is part of a recent email they sent back to us in Australia:

Building progress at Maternal and Child Health facility:

We caught up with the Ugandan builder, Patrick this morning. The plastering of walls is completed they are still working on the cornices. Chipping of the floors in the first room has started in preparation for final floor surface to be laid. Outside near generator the retaining wall / stormwater drainage is finished and plastering the brick wall along fence line will be completed tomorrow. Along building wall Amos , the plumber , is laying waste pipes and when this is completed painting of the generator building will be done. The next week they will start digging the water tank hole and prepping for the stand.

The Yotkom Compassion fund was used this week following the guide lines set out. Two children arrived at Yotkom referral from Government hospital as their X-ray facility is still out. The children a young boy aged 6 and his sister aged about 10 had walked 25 miles with just enough money to cover consultation and x-ray but not for treatment. Dr Robert and Patrick thought he had a dislocated elbow and had a great deal of pain. Dr Robert and Patrick  agreed he could not go that distance back home without treatment. We had a meeting with Peter Omara and came to the decision that it was appropriate to access the fund for the well being of the boy. They were also given money for safe transport home

Dr James , our Orthopaedic Clinician , was very pleased to receive a  drill from Australia.

Dentist Godfrey was very excited and thankful to receive the equipment sent from Australia He quickly put into service 

Registration with Australian Charities and Non for Profits Commission

Yotkom Uganda Ltd

is a Company registered in Australia with the purposes of pursuing the vision of improving access and excellence in Primary Health Care in Northern Uganda.
Our Australian Business Number is :  36 622 357 331
We are registered with the Australian Charities and Non for Profits Commission.

ACNC

We are listed as as Public Benevolent Institution.
Details regarding our work and annual reports and financial statements can be viewed on this web site.

The Australian Taxation Office has recently granted Yotkom DGR status.
That means we are a :    Deductible Gift Recipient
As such, we can issue tax deductible receipts to Australian donors .

If you give to our work in Uganda, this can be done by making a direct deposit to our Australian Bank Account.
Please also email us to notify us of your gift so we can provide you with prompt provision of a tax deductible receipt by return email or by post if you provide your address.
If you are a regular donor, just give your name on the direct deposit form and we will know your address to send receipts to .

Our bank details :

Commonwealth Bank
Account name: Yotkom Uganda
BSB: 064 186
Account number : 10884542

Maternal and Child Health Facility taking shape

It is so exciting to be here and see our new Maternal and Child Health facility rising up  from the ground.

This new building is 3 times larger than our existing primary health care facility and it is truly amazing to see this dream become a reality!
The new building is made of two halves connected by a breezeway .
One half provides a birthing facility for women and babies with two labour wards and a dedicated theatre for Caesarian section. This section also houses some admission areas for women and a newborn baby ward, as well as areas for women to attend pregnancy checks and receive health education.
The second half of the structure has several admission wards along with teaching facilities and an administration zone.

This second stage of Yotkom Medical Centre  is bring constructed through generous donations from Gateway Baptist Church in Australia and many  other donors who continue to help us achieve our vision to improve access and excellence in Primary Health Care in Northern Uganda.

Can we ask you to consider donating to our work.
We need continuing donor support, particularly as we seek to employ more senior medical staff to supervise the bigger facility.  We know our wages bill will increase.
We need to strive for excellent medical standards and this can only be achieved by recruiting more senior Ugandan medical professionals full time.
One of our key goals at Yotkom is self reliance , and we are pleased to report that our Yotkom primary health care facility , currently employing 32 staff, is right now  largely operating as a self reliant clinic due to the strategy of local income generation we have in place .
The bigger facility will put some financial strain on us initially but as it grows we believe we will also come close to self reliance.   In the meantime ,during this growth phase, we will be so appreciative of the giving  we receive from Australia to help us lift off!
thank you for  supporting us !

Pastoral care visit

Pastor Jason Elsmore from Gateway Baptist Church in Brisbane Australia  spent some days at Yotkom . He was accompanied by a small team , including Nick Paton, who was able to make an audiovisual record of the work being undertaken in our project.

This will be used to report back most especially to the Gateway community who support us in so many ways .
The fulfilment of the vision we have to respond to injustice, poverty and sickness in Northern Uganda  would not be possible without  the constant presence of this  very special outwardly -looking church community in Australia.
While he was here, Jason gave us some inspirational messages and encouraged us to have love at the centre of our relationships within the team and as a distinctive way in which we respond to  our patients.

Young blood

Dr Jonathan Tey was embraced by our medical team of nurses and doctors and provided inspiration to them by modelling good medical practice in the daily activities at Yotkom and through formal teaching at Continuing Medical Education forums

He is mentoring a young man, Denis who is undertaking medical studies at nearby Gulu University . Denis has been bonded to work at Yotkom at the completion of his studies as part of our human resource planning for the future.

Chelsea Edwards has background in medical research and was able to introduce a new pathology test kit to our laboratory for Leischmaniasis. 

She also developed close relationships with our administrators, theatre nurse and medical record department.

We really benefit from these visits and our partnership with Australia