Nasreen Bibi (age 65) is among those hundreds of thousands of people in Pakistan who cannot afford a medical treatment due to limited finances. Her family of 6 adults and 2 children survives on a collective earning of less than Rs. 10,000/-. Nasreen suffers from Diabetes for 15 years and did not take her daily medication to control it since the diagnosis. The illness took its toll in early 2009 when she accidently got a cut on her foot. The wound became worse within weeks due to diabetes and the neighborhood doctor failed to treat it. She ended up at the Baqai Oncology Hospital in Nazimabad, Karachi for consultation from a Diabetologist who got alarmed after looking at her foot’s wound which had gangrene. Upon his advice, she underwent a surgery to amputate two of her toes to help stop the gangrene from spreading.

During recovery, she was told to take an injection thrice a day for a few weeks to help control the toxins in her body. This injection costed Rs. 850. Also, weekly medication intake costed Rs. 3500 and the post surgery dressing was for Rs. 300 per day (dressing material+nursing fee). Keeping in mind the costs attached with all these heads, Nasreen started skipping all of them just three weeks later, after exhausting all family savings.

The gangrene started spreading again, she suffered from fever and kept vomiting all day long…

This was the time when one of the Help Pakistan Team members heard about her condition through a friend and decided to take action. Even though this was the time when the NGO was in its infancy, help to a deserving person did not stop. Funds were arranged through appeals and collections from individuals and monetary donations along with medical supplies were provided to Nasreen on a regular basis. A deputed Help Pakistan volunteer visited her every week to keep a check on her progress and needs. Large donations were provided when she was admitted in the hospital again for another surgery to save her leg from amputation. Today, though Nasreen has lost four toes on her foot in her battle with diabetes’ related gangrene, but has been able to save her leg and foot.

Help Pakistan aims to reach out to those people for medical help which do not even get to reach to the hospital for ample treatment, specially those whose treatment stops due to financial limitations.

Asad Shafiq is 18 years old and suffers from Thalassemia since birth. His father left his mother when he was 3 months old. She remarried a taxi driver with whom she has 6 other kids. Asad also has a 20 year old elder brother who suffers from chronic epilepsy and is mentally challenged. Household income is scarce and though the step father takes care of their basic needs (food, clothing etc.), managing Asad’s medical bills is difficult. Asad needs a blood transfusion once a month and some regular medicine intake. Delaying the blood transfusion leads to pitch fever and bleeding from nose and mouth. Skipping medicines means severe joint pain and weakness. Moreover, complimentary blood donations are no more available. Since Asad and his family live in a very disadvantaged locality, people donate their blood to him against a payment of Rs. 1000 to 2000 for a pint.

Life was painfully difficult for Asad until he was discovered by a Help Pakistan Team Member. Once his profile appeared on the website, a kind donor sponsored him and he has been receiving a monthly stipend since August 2010 that covers his expenses for blood transfusion and medicines. Asad’s long and enduring struggle continues with Thalassemia, now with some help from the community.

Hafiz Muhammad Sharif is a 55 year old heart patient in Karachi. Also suffering from diabetes and high-blood pressure, he continued to work to earn a living until year 2008 when he fell from a public bus. Accidental injuries led to the complete loss of eyesight and the start of severely painful spinal problem. In-patient and out-patient treatments at various hospitals in Karachi, various tests & examinations and regular medicine intake have achieved no major breakthrough in solving his disability or illnesses.

Jobless for over a decade and responsible for a family of 8 people (wife, 3 daughters, 2 sons and an aged ailing father), Hafiz Shareef was struggling with life and had almost lost hope when he was introduced to a Help Pakistan Team Member in September 2009. Since then, whether it is taking care of his family's grocery needs or medicine bills, or assisted visit to the doctor, a Help Pakistan Team Member has always been there to help him out. Recently, Hafiz Shareef has also been sponsored through Help Pakistan's Mahana Rashan Program for 12 months' grocery with the help of 2 kind donors. His struggle continues but some help from the community makes life easier.