Mahsas Progress

* Any views expressed in this article are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Two months ago, we told you about Mahsa, a severely malnourished girl in Afghanistan, who was starting her outpatient treatment at Medair’s new nutrition clinic in Yawan. Seven weeks after beginning treatment, two of our staff went to visit with Mahsa and her family in her home village...We leave our vehicle where the dirt road ends and travel the final kilometre into Sari village on foot. An hour has passed since we left the nutrition clinic in Yawan. To reach Sari, we had to drive through a dry, stony river bed and then weave high up into the hills. Seven weeks ago, Abdul Shaya travelled the same dirt road by donkey, a much longer, more arduous journey. He brought his malnourished 18-month-old granddaughter Mahsa to be seen at Medair’s newly opened nutrition clinic. Abdul Shaya had been deeply concerned, seeing Mahsa grow weaker and thinner by the day.Today, we are visiting remote Sari village to see how Mahsa is progressing. Curious villagers greet us as we walk into town. Mahsa’s grandfather, Abdul Shaya, is high in the hills grazing his animals, but we are welcomed into the home of Mahsa’s great uncle Aarash, who serves us tea and dates.After a short wait, her father Hamed arrives with Mahsa in his arms. Hamed greets us with a gentle smile. “A world of thanks for coming here,” he says. He cradles Mahsa tenderly as she snuggles closely to her father, shy at the sight of us. “Don’t be frightened, daughter,” says Hamed. “These are the people who have come to help you.” The Nutrition Programme Malnutrition is a major contributor to shockingly high rates of child mortality in Afghanistan’s remote villages. Growing seasons are short, winters are long, and harvests are unpredictable. Families are forced to survive the winter on the meagre reserves they can store over the summer. In these isolated villages, people often lack knowledge about the benefits of nutritious foods like fruits and vegetables, or about proper nutrition during pregnancy and breastfeeding.To combat widespread malnutrition, Medair has established four nutrition clinics in Badakhshan province. Our programme provides assistance to malnourished women and children and also supports community-based education on nutrition, food preparation, breastfeeding, health, and hygiene to help prevent malnutrition in the future.Seven weeks ago, when Mahsa was assessed by the nutrition team, she was diagnosed as severely malnourished. We admitted her into our Outpatient Therapeutic Programme and gave a large bag of nutrition-rich therapeutic food to her grandfather to bring home. However, her recovery depended greatly on her family’s commitment to returning with her every two weeks for follow-up assessments and to receive more food.Happily, Mahsa’s family has shown a clear commitment to her recovery. “It is difficult as it takes me at least six hours to travel to and from the clinic,” explains Hamed. “But making this trip is the most important thing I can do for my daughter’s health.”Steady ImprovementSeeing her today, Mahsa still appears small and pale, but she has definitely added weight from when we first met her. She studies us silently with her big eyes while her father speaks. “Mahsa has been to your clinic three times now,” says Hamed. “Your staff are all so pleased to see her and to see how she is improving. They keep telling me to regularly bring her to clinic so that she will continue to improve.” Mahsa has gained more than half a kilogram since her first visit to the clinic. The nutrition team are happy with Mahsa’s slow, steady increase in weight and her increased arm measurement scores. Her family are thrilled with the changes they see in her. “My daughter really likes the plumpy nut!” says Hamed with a big smile, referring to the nutritional food she receives at the clinic. “When I was at the clinic, your staff gave her some to eat while we spoke. She had eaten it all before we finished speaking!”Eating, Laughing, and StandingAlthough she remains malnourished and in need of treatment, Mahsa now has energy and an interest in food that she didn’t have just seven weeks ago. “When we first brought her to you she was really sick,” says Hamed. “She was not eating or anything. Now she is eating. She can now play with her brother and sisters. She laughs now as she plays with them. At first she couldn’t stand, but now she can, and she is even trying to walk!”Hamed apologised to us that Mahsa’s grandfather, Abdul Shaya, was not there to welcome us himself. “My father is delighted that Mahsa is getting better,” says Hamed. “He loves her, he is with her whenever he can be.”Making A Lasting ImpactMahsa is just one among thousands of malnourished young children in the remote villages of Badakhshan. With our nutrition programme, we aim to save children’s lives and leave a lasting impact with education that will help prevent such severe malnutrition in the future.“Maybe other parents will see Mahsa and see the changes in her,” says Hamed. “They might be encouraged to bring their children to your clinic as they see the improvement in my daughter.”When it is time to depart, Hamed thanks us warmly for our visit and for the work we are doing for children in his community. “It is so good that this project is in Yawan,” he says. “If it was not here I would have nowhere else to go. If we didn’t receive this food we would lose this child.” As Mahsa continues to receive treatment, we will continue to report back on her progress as we all pray for her full recovery to health. To make a donation to this life-saving programme, please click here.____________________________________________________________________Medair’s nutrition project in Afghanistan is supported by Swiss Solidarity, Mennonite Central Committee (MCC), WFP, UNICEF, and private donations. Medair has operated in Afghanistan since 1996 and is serving vulnerable and isolated communities in the provinces of Badakhshan and the Central Highlands. In addition to providing nutritional support and training to malnourished women and children, Medair is helping communities with clean water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) and supporting communities through emergency response when natural disaster occurs. This web feature was produced with resources gathered by Medair field and headquarters staff. The views expressed herein are those solely of Medair and should not be taken, in any way, to reflect the official opinion of any other organisation.