Kitui Snake Bite Medical Fund

Kitui county is located in the Eastern part of Kenya, the region has hot and humid climate with sandy and rocky landscape. Kitui County has a high population of venomous snakes resulting to frequent incidences of attacks by snakes with upto ten residents of Kitui County being bitten by snakes daily resulting to deaths, amputation and permanent disability. Being a rural region with a population that is mainly engaged in peasant farming as the main economic activity, about 80% of the population cannot afford vials whenever they are bitten by the poisonous snakes since their average daily income is less than USD$1. Due to inadequate access to the antivenon vials and lack of funds for surgical procedures, many victims of snake bites develop complications, permanent disability, while others die immediately they are bitten by the highly poisounous snake species such as mambas, puff adders, stiletto snakes and cobras. Majority are also unable to afford the needed surgical procedures to save their lives.

THE INITIATIVE
The Kitui Snake Bite Medical Fund is an initiative of Save Kenya Foundation, a non-profit organization that works to improve the living standards of underprivileged and marginalized communities in Kenya.You can learn more about the work of Save Kenya Foundation at: www.savekenyafoundation.org

THE TARGET
The target is to raise US$30,000 to make it possible for Save Kenya Foundation to provide vials of anti-venom to treat victims of snakebites in the and finance surgical procedures for the victims with fatal cases extreme in rural villages of Kitui County.

HOW YOUR DONATION WILL HELP

Your donation will enable the purchase and provision of two major antivenom products to the residents of Kitui County who experience snakebites on a daily basis and financing surgical procedures for fatal cases of snake bites.
The antivenoms include:
SAVP Polyvalent Snake Antivenom for use against bites by Puff adders (Bitis arietans), Gaboon vipers (Bitis gabonica), Green mambas (Dendroaspis angusticeps), Jameson’s mambas (Dendroaspis jamesoni), Black mambas (Dendroaspis polylepis), Rinkhals spitting cobras (Haemachatus haemachatus), Cape cobras (Naja nivea), Forest cobras (Naja melanoleuca), Snouted Cobras (Naja annulifera) and spitting cobras (Naja Mossambica) SAVP Boomslang Monovalent Antivenom which is the only antivenom available in the world to treat bites by Boomslangs (Dispholidus typus).
Purchasing these antivenoms costs approximately Kshs. 18,000 (about US$180) per vial, and depending on the species of snake involved, a patient may need 5-10 vials of antivenom as an initial dose. With a single treatment costing as much as US$900-1800, it is evident that many Kitui residents whose daily income is as low as US$1cannot afford to buy the antivenoms when they are bitten by snakes or if someone in their family is bitten by a venomous snake.
Your donation will help save lives in Kitui County by delivering as many doses of these antivenoms as possible to the victims, finacing the costs of surgical procedures as well as availing the vials in clinics and health centres in the rural communities.
Your donation will also help:
1. Educate the communities on environmental management practices that would reduce the incidences of snake attacks.
2. Conduct community education and training initiatives to educate residents of Kitui on snakebite prevention and first aid procedures.
3. Train local doctors, nurses and health workers on how to handle snakebites from various species of snakes more effectively.


THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

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