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Buildings:
Below are some of the projects volunteer craft people from Ireland and local
Moldovan builders have carried out:
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The basement of one of the existing blocks of the orphanage
was completely gutted & refurbished to provide a fully functional volunteer
living and sleeping quarters. Co-ordinated and supervised by Greg Power and
Pearse Douglas, with the help of 21 craftsmen from Ireland - they built and
fitted out a superb facility.
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The buildings of the orphanage date back to the 40's and
little renovation or restoration work had been carried out. They were literally
falling down around the children. The following work was carried out by
Outreach Moldova:
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Re-plastering the exteriors of the buildings
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Weather proofing the buildings
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New windows
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Installing new universal access bathrooms
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Renovation of bedrooms
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Building of classrooms
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Renovation of administration block
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Replacing boilers, furnaces & generators for the heating
system
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Installing new functional radiators and heating system
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Fully re-wiring the existing dangerous electrical system
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Extensions to weather proof areas and provide the children
with dedicated relaxation areas
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We built a full medical treatment centre, including an
isolation area for sick children to be treated, contagion rooms, septic and
aseptic procedure rooms.
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We built a new fully equipped rehabilitation area including,
gym, physiotherapy, speech therapy and procedure room
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We built a fully equipped dental suite
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We built a new Pharmacy and provided all the stock.
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We built and installed with the help of Jury's Hotel group
staff scheme a new playground with the design based on Dublin zoo, providing
endless hours of activity for the children.
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We installed a basic hairdressing salon to provide a special
treat for the children and stop the barbaric system of the state staff shaving
the children's hair.
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New offices for medical, nursing and matron staff.
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We built a new laundry and the Rotary club in the UK donated
washing and ironing machines
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Pathways were laid around the entire orphanage so that the
children could become mobile in their wheelchairs
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With the help and financial assistance of the Dept. of
Foreign Affairs in Ireland (NGO co-financing scheme) we were able to build and
fully equip a state of the art kitchen and eating facility for the children,
which has for the first time allowed us to make real progress in the nutrition
programme for the children.
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A new 400 KVA generator now ensures that the children will never again be
without heat, light or hot water
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Humanitarian Aid:
Since July 2001 there have been 12 x 40 ft containers of humanitarian aid
shipped to Moldova from Ireland and numerous air cargo shipments. We have sent
everything from new wheelchairs, medical equipment, nappies, clothing, to
building materials and furniture.
Medical Programme:
The medical programme has been extraordinary. It gave meaning to the term "back
to basics". We started with nothing, no medical files, no records, no
facilities and severely ill children. Severe life threatening malnutrition and
anaemia's, untreated infections, transmissible diseases, unmedicated
epileptics, acute emergencies and chronic debilitating illnesses. Children were
silent, uncommunicative and unresponsive. When approached the children were
terrified and understandably so, given the lack of medical care and abuse up to
that point. The weekly death rate a cruel reality the children endured.
Thankfully today there is a different picture. Where there once was silence
there now is lots of noise (what you would expect of children!). The speech
therapists had an uphill battle on their hands. After years of neglect, the
children just lay in cots half the size of their little bodies, having lost all
muscle tone, strength and co-ordination. They are now walking and running and
more are being treated surgically and taking part in the rehabilitation
programme. The rehabilitation team has carried out such wonderful work.
We implemented a complete vaccination programme for all children - no
vaccination records existed nor any vaccination programme followed - many
children still live with the complications of having had contact with
communicable diseases at an early age.
In the past the children had no access to hospitalisation in the event of an
acute emergency (medical or surgical) due to lack of transport and the
abhorrent attitude of seeing no reason to give up a bed space to a disabled
child for treatment when a "normal" person could get it.
Today we have contracts with specialists in the main paediatric units in
Chisinau that provide immediate assistance day or night depending on the
situation. Like everything in Moldova it has been a long time in coming but no
longer does any child wait for appropriate treatment irrespective of their
condition. They are our immediate response specialists - a team of over 20
specialists in their field that are on the other end of a telephone with a
driver on standby. Thankfully due to the superb standard of medical care given
at the orphanage today we need this team less and less.
It is the little things that make a difference in a child's life and they may
seem so easy to implement when you think of your own children/family but
Moldovan society's resistance to change has been one of the most difficult
challenges the Irish staff in Hincesti have had to face. With the help of the
medical staff and volunteers there is a palpable change in attitude towards the
children and it is wonderful to see the children benefit from personal
interaction and love and attention.
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