First Lady Margaret Kenyatta with a child admitted at AIC CURE, Kijabe. Kenyatta donated a fully kitted Beyond Zero Mobile Clinic for the hospital’s outreach services. [Photo: Office of the First Lady Kenya]
First Lady Margaret Kenyatta has donated a fully kitted Beyond Zero Mobile Clinic to the AIC Cure International Orthopaedic Hospital, Kijabe for their outreach services.
Besides the mobile clinic, the First Lady presented early Valentine flowers to hundreds of disabled children including those undergoing treatment at the facility and others drawn from various institutions for the physically disabled in Nairobi, Kiambu, Kajiado and Machakos on Friday. “And as we present each one of you with a valentine flower, I want every one of you to always remember, that you are gifted, you are important, and you mean so much to the world,” the First Lady told the children.At the hospital, Kenyatta interacted and shared experiences with physically challenged children during the Hospital’s “Night to Shine, 2017 Event”.She also laid a foundation stone for the hospital’s Sh250 million outpatient complex and commissioned High Dependency Unit (HDU) equipment donated by Lotto Foundation.The First Lady said all children including those with disabilities need equal love, compassion, safety, protection and acceptance from parents and the society.She said disability affects not only the children but also the parents and teachers who have to deal with those who are physically challenged.“Disability is difficult – and it can be especially difficult for children to cope and live with in a community who, when faced with a disabled person, either can be unkind and ignore them or be judgmental, finally discriminating, stigmatising and excluding them,” she said.It is especially difficult to parents, some of whom do not know how to cope with the challenge, added the First Lady.She called on Kenyans to create an environment in which all the children can reach their full potential and be what they are meant to be in society.“This is the kind of world we need: A world that has enough love, compassion and kindness, to wrap its arms around all our children, a world in which every child is accommodated, embraced and invested in,” said Kenyatta.She said today’s event presented an opportunity to celebrate the fundamental dignity, worth and beauty of all human life.The First Lady said disability or not, children are full of possibility and potential that is special in a unique way if appreciated, nurtured and developed.She thanked the AIC-Cure hospital for the incredible work the institution is doing in supporting children with physical and orthopaedic conditions and giving them access to life-changing corrective surgeries.