Home of Hope shares what happens when they have a medical emergency and thanks the team for their speedy action in saving a resident.
Cape Town, South Africa (31 May 2024) – This past weekend, the Home of Hope team had a medical emergency that left them a little shaken but also extremely grateful for the love and support their team and volunteers showed during the ordeal.
Home of Hope is a non-profit organisation that cares for abused and abandoned children in South Africa, especially those suffering from Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) – permanent brain damage caused by prenatal exposure to alcohol.
The home has two bases, one in Table View and one in Malmesbury. The Malmesbury residence is known as the Anselm Farm which is located on a small holding and is where many of the organisation’s “adult” residents live.
One of these residents, 22-year-old Baxolele who has been with the home since he was a toddler, had his first-ever medical emergency. Thanks to the fast-acting farm project manager, Phindi and international volunteer Dory, Baxolele was rushed to the hospital to treat a severe swelling of his face. The Home of Hope shared the experience and showcased why moments like these are so intense for the whole home.
“This past weekend, we had a huge scare with Baxolele, one of our young adults who resides on Anselm Farm. He has been with us since he was a toddler and we have never had a hospital health scare with him before. This weekend his face had swollen up due to unknown reasons and we had to rush him to the emergency room.
Baxolele is 22 years and unfortunately, due to his special needs, his mental age is that of a 5-year-old; he couldn’t tell us whether he had eaten something that could’ve caused him to have an allergic reaction or if something had bitten him. All he could do was question why he was at the hospital, as he could not understand what was going on around him and why he was in so much discomfort and pain.
An incident like this causes a lot of trauma for children who are neurodiverse due to their inability to understand traumatic situations when it is happening, especially for someone like Baxolele, the trauma from the experience appears months after. Even though he was seen to and discharged a day later that entire process of having strangers around, receiving an injection and feeling excruciating pain is a feeling which caused Baxolele to feel terrified”
The absolutely harrowing moment for Baxolele was also one of great pride for the Home of Hope team as they got to see two of their very own, become heroes in a scary moment.
“We are truly grateful to our farm project manager, Phindi and Dory our international volunteer from the Netherlands who acted fast in getting him to the hospital and ensured that he was attended to as quickly as possible and remained by his side the entire time.
We are very happy to say that Baxolele is home safe and getting some rest.”
While this medical emergency is a rare moment in the day-to-day running of things, it underpins the importance of having organisations like the Home of Hope. The team work tirelessly to give these children, teens and young adults the best lives despite their respective challenges.
The farm residence gives these young men and women a space to be adults with special needs. They have the ability to go outdoors and work with their hands while remaining protected and cared for.
If you would like to support the work being doing by the Home of Hope, you can find out more via their website here.
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