Providing employment to local businesses

The unemployment rate in northern Uganda is over 50%

Our medical construction has a spin off benefit to the local Kitgum community by providing employment to many local businesses.

Our windows and doors are being fabricated in a local workshop by an energetic team who are taking pride in their work 

Proud of our dedicated team saving lives

On our busy morning round of admitted patients we had to climb over people sleeping on the floors and carers with bowls of food prepared for the sick. The place is buzzing .
We examined a young child admitted the night before with severe life threatening malaria , convulsions and high fever and it struck me the difference these young clinical officers are making to children and families here. Without access to life saving intravenous medications offered in our medical centre , these little children would certainly die.
Later in the day , I asked Nancy, one of  the young medical officers here  what had motivated her to go through all the struggles necessary to study medicine . She told me she had been moved by what she had witnessed of sickness and suffering as she grew up in  rural Uganda and  decided  she wanted to be an instrument used by God to save lives
 . It was good to be able to encourage her and reflect  on the little children on our ward round this morning that she had diagnosed, treated and cured.
It is a real privilege to be here working alongside these dedicated compassionate people.
Thanks to all those in Australia who support our project. You are making a difference to so many people in need here through your generosity.

Laboratory technician taking blood sample for malaria testing 

Rendering of New Yotkom Medical clinic exterior walls 

Please consider helping us reach our target to complete the building project by giving a tax deductible donation.  This can de done by following the guide on the right hand side of this web page or go to:
donate.yotkom.com
We are striving to see the building open by October .

The building progresses

Rear of the building showing site for septic tank being dug 

Digging and constructing by hand a large septic tank

Sifting sand for impurities

Andrew with assistant project manager William, inspecting internal wall rendering 

Walls with plumbing and electrical conduits prior to rendering 

Mesh and concrete ceilings in hallway showing skylights

Malaria epidemic in Northern Uganda

Clinical officers Nancy, Peter and Richard 

The clinical officers working at Yotkom Bregma Medical Centre are being challenged by the number of cases of acute Malaria arising in the community. Many are seriously ill, especially the children. They require admission to our facility for intravenous medications.
The nearby Government hospital is overwhelmed with cases, housing over four hundred children in the small children's ward. There were five children who died of malaria last week.
Our team are dedicated to serving the community. We have some good clinical guidelines in place and charting of fluids and drugs is now part of the nursing routine for patients staying over in the wards.

We have developed a Clinical Guidelines manual to be used as a helpful reference for all the medical staff when treating common conditions . This ensures a consistent approach to treatment of diseases and is also a reflection of the latest international recommendations,

Yotkom is focussed on continuing education for our health workers and we encourage attendance at training seminars. Our chaplain Concy is going to be sponsored to attend a country wide pastors and counsellors conference in Kampala this month.

Building update

Inspecting medical clinic with project manager and electricians to locate power outlets and computer networks

Electricians chisel grooves for conduits into the brick walls. Later to be rendered

Guesthouse site is being fenced 

Yotkom Bregma Medical Centre nearing completion

I believe within two months the construction of the Yotkom Bregma Medical Centre in Kitgum Uganda will be completed and the 30 Ugandan health workers we partner with will have a new home.

It's so exciting to walk through the building which up to know has been a picture in the minds eye or a sketch on a piece of paper. The high ceilings  will provide for a big spacious look and a cool space. Big windows are letting in lots of natural light.
Today the doctors, lab technicians, X-ray and ultrasound operators walked through the rooms with our project director Andrew Kilama and the electricians to locate lights and switches as well as locations for a computer cabling network. 

Excited about the future and how we can together make a difference.

After over 10 weeks living and working in Kitgum Uganda, Andrew and Anne Wright are returning to Australia.

Andrew plans to  come back to Uganda in July.

We are feeling excited about the future of the Yotkom Uganda project.

It is very encouraging to work with such a great  team of healthcare professionals.

There is a real sense of unity and shared vision amongst our leadership who want so much. to create a centre  of hope and healing ,providing high standards of health care to this community.

We are working in a part of the world where there is the greatest need for medical intervention.
Subsaharan Africa has  25 % of the worlds disease burden and only 3% of the worlds health professionals and 1% of the worlds health expenditure.
 Infectious diseases like malaria and tuberculosis are common here. Add to this the burden of HIV AIDs which affects approximately one in five people.  Then factor in the rising tide of non communicable diseases like diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease . And remember in the community of Northern Uganda  live many  of the very poor, with about 40% living below the  United Nations   poverty  line  defined as. less s than $1 US per day.
Northern Uganda is recovering from twenty years of civil war and the unemployment rate is over 60%..
We know The need is great. Living here we have witnessed this first hand ...and it has  had a profound impact on us.
We have a lot of faith that our project can help meet the  need and at the same time show Gods love through compassionate,wholistic health care.

The construction of  the Yotkom Bregma Medical  Centre  is well underway with foundations being poured in APRIL . The walls have been erected in JUNE and the roof is due to be placed in early JULY.

Yotkom  Medical Centre . June 2015

 We have a lot of admiration and confidence in our  building project manager , Andrew Kilama  to complete the task to a high standard  by October 2015.
We need another $25,000 AUS by then to complete the construction .
Please consider donating toward this  by clicking on the  GIVE NOW tax deductible link on the right hand side of this  web page.
The medical team of 30 currently working in rented facilities are very excited about the pending move.

On our worksite we have a chaplain who is providing pastoral care to our builders and labourers. His name is Fearless !

About one kilometre from the medical centre site we have prepared some land for the future construction of a guesthouse facility which will accommodate  teachers, trainers and facilitators who wish to spend some time working with our  Yotkom .Uganda health project.  We believe there are many people in Australia and elsewhere who would like to spend time here,, Sharing their knowledge and skills  in the fields of medicine, surgery, nursing, allied health,, business, counselling, information technology  and many others.

We would love to start building g this facility in 2016!

X Ray facilities are critical to the effective functioning of our medical centre,  there are many patients who present daily with orthopaedic problems such as fractured bones and dislocations as  a result if road traffic accidents or  injuries at home and in the work place.
X Rays assist the doctors greatly in diagnosing and treating.
The machines draw a lot if power so our solar system cannot cope with the demand.  The network power is disrupted frequently so we have wanted a generator for sometime to minimise work disruption.
 We want to thank so many generous people who gave specifically to this purchase !