In July 2015 Pastor Etienne brought the team who were there for the annual summer camp to see a plot of land where he hoped they would be able to build a two or three room clinic.
Koudougou Clinic 2018 - The story so far
Fast forward to this summer July 2018 and the team are visiting again for the annual children’s summer camp. Pastor Etienne brings us to a much larger plot of land which has become the home of a two story, 16 room building which, once it is furnished and kitted out, will become the clinic.
As well as this this site has its own well which they were able to dig thanks to a generous donation a family gave in memory of their loved one. After the well was dug, samples where sent away to find out if the water is safe for human consumption. The tests came back and confirmed the water was of a very high quality.
More than that they discovered there is such a vast amount of water, not only will they have enough to serve the clinic they will also have enough leftover which they can sell it to the local community. This was very exciting news for many reasons but particularly because they hope they will be able to have a dialysis facility at the clinic (the nearest hospital doesn’t have a reliable source of water and struggles to be able to provide this treatment). There are also plans to have an x‑ray machine in one of the downstairs rooms.
This building will serve day patients: men, women and children. Pastor Etienne’s daughter is currently working as a doctor in France where she has specialised in both cardiology and paediatrics. Once the clinic is completed, the plan is for her and her family to return to Koudougou and she will run the clinic.
There is also plenty of land around the clinic and it is Pastor Etienne’s hope that they will be able to build a few rooms which will become wards for patient who require over night care.
While the building is nearly complete the next challenge will be raising the funds to buy all the necessary supplies and equipment. Its been amazing to see how the dream for a three room clinic has grown and developed into the photos you see below. The community of Koudougou will greatly benefit from this facility.
The local hospital there struggles with over crowding, lack of resources but medical supplies and staff and many local people struggle with the expense of traveling to it to get the treatment they need. It’s exciting to think of how many lives will be transformed by being able to access the medical care and treatment they need.