It rains a lot in Diébougou in the Sud-Ouest region of Burkina Faso. This means that malaria transmission occurs throughout the year in this West African country, but it’s especially high during the peak season, which runs from June to October, increasing the importance of community-based health care. From the health facility in Diébougou, the
As a youngster in Kenya, Mary Wambua was different. Children stayed away from her. “When my friends were going to school and playing together—I was on my own. They said I smelled and didn’t want to get close to me,” says Mary Wambua, 48. Mary had a fistula—an abnormal passage between the bladder and vagina
It was five years ago when Margaret Kugonza’s husband died after spending just a few days in the hospital. “The doctor asked to see me after his funeral,” Margaret recalls. “I went and they did an HIV test.” Upon learning she tested positive for HIV, “my heart almost stopped,” Margaret says. She started antiretroviral therapy
