Giffi P., 10

Giffi is the second-born child in her family. She lives with her parents and two siblings in a two-room semi-permanent house. Both her parents are unemployed and depend on subsistence farming to support the family. Her parents describe her as a very active, intelligent, and lively child. Giffi herself dreams of becoming a doctor when she grows up. According to her father, Giffi was in her usual good health until one afternoon while the family was drying harvested maize. He noticed that her movements were unusually slow, which was out of character for her energetic nature. When he asked if she was feeling well, Giffi said she felt a little tired. He advised her to rest, and later that evening she ate supper and went to sleep as usual. The following morning, by around 10:00 a.m., Giffi had not woken up, which alarmed her mother. When she went to check on her, she found Giffi extremely weak and barely responsive to her name. She was unable to sit up or lift her body. Her body was extremely hot, and she was drenched in sweat. Moments later, Giffi began to convulse, sending her mother into panic. Her father was immediately called, and he rushed Giffi to a nearby health centre for urgent medical attention. At the health centre, the child was stabilised and later referred to Siaya County Referral Hospital for specialised care. While at the referring health facility, Giffi’s father learned about Helpster Charity. Initially, he hesitated to take his daughter to Siaya County Referral Hospital, fearing that the cost of treatment would be unaffordable. However, a nurse at the health centre informed him about Helpster Charity and reassured him that vulnerable children could receive support through the organisation.

Giffi was brought to the hospital after being referred from Hawinga health centre. She was brought to the hospital with complaints of hotness of the body, and extreme body weakness. She was diagnosed with severe malaria and febrile convulsions. She was promptly stabilised and admitted for further management. She was treated on IV Artesunate, gentamicin, paracetamol, AL among other drugs. She responded well to treatment and was eventually discharged on orals. A visit to her home revealed Giffi was doing well and had even gone back to school.

In a 10-year-old child like Giffi, a diagnosis of severe malaria accompanied by convulsions requires urgent specialized care, as the prognosis depends heavily on whether the seizures are purely fever-related or indicate direct brain involvement of cerebral malaria The timely medical intervention makes Giffi's prognosis good.