As Sierra Leone works to bring the Ebola outbreak under control, humanitarian organization the Buddhist Compassionate Relief Tzu Chi Foundation (Tzu Chi Foundation) and its partners are providing relief for Sierra Leoneans and technical support to seven hospitals in the country.
The original Tzu Chi Foundation premises in Hualien, Taiwan. From tzuchi.us
The foundation’s project manager for West Africa Stephen Fomba said the organization, working in partnership with Caritas Sierra Leone, had shipped five containers of donated items from Taiwan to the country, containing 1,512 portable beds, 2,720 eco-blankets, 15,740 kg of instant rice, and 3,000 plastic bowls, bowl covers, and spoons. Fomba said the Healey Relief Foundation team in Sierra Leone would distribute the supplies to Ebola treatment and holding centers, hospitals, and families affected by Ebola.
The Lumberton, New Jersey-based Healey Relief Foundation is working with the Tzu Chi Foundation to provide assistance to hospitals. “We actually want to promote these institutions to international standard; Sierra Leone has some of the worst healthcare outcomes in the world and we need to strengthen the healthcare infrastructure to address high rates of infant mortality and maternal deaths. We also need to ensure that the healthcare system is designed so that future pandemics can be better controlled,” said Executive Director Ben Para. (AllAfrica)
The foundation's headquarters today. From tzuchi.us
In Taiwan, meanwhile, the Buddhist Tzu Chi Stem Cell Center (BTCSCC) said in a statement that the number of bone marrow donors at the center had exceeded 4,000 as of 10 August, benefiting patients in 29 countries. The BTCSCC, established in 1994, is affiliated with the Buddhist Tzu Chi General Hospital in Hualien, eastern Taiwan.
BTCSCC director Yang Kuo-liang said the center handled more than 300 bone marrow donors per year, and had received 11 donations in the first 10 days of August alone.
The foundation marking its one-year anniversary. From tzuchi.us
One donor, college student Yu Hsin-lun from Taichung in central Taiwan, said she decided to donate after learning that her bone marrow could save the life of a terminally ill person. She added: “I hope that the person saved by my bone marrow can regain his or her health, be glad to give a hand to another person and be kind to animals.” (Focus Taiwan)
Another donor, Chang Sze-fu, 50, said he was happy to be able to save the life of another person and that he considered himself a lucky man.
The Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation is an international non-profit, non-governmental humanitarian organization founded in Taiwan in 1966 by Buddhist nun Sister Cheng Yen. The foundation has 502 offices in 50 countries and regions.