The work of the Leprosy Mission

MORPETH ROTARY HEARS ABOUT LEPROSY Jayne Thomas is a volunteer speaker for the Leprosy Mission for England and Wales who came to talk about her role. The Mission is a Christian charity that was founded by Wellesley Bailey (1846-1937) and his wife Alice. He had gone to India and met with people who had leprosy when he stayed with missionaries. He trained, went to Bombay and worked as a missionary for three years. When he returned to Ireland he could not forget what he had seen and decided to raise awareness and get support. By 1874 the Mission to Lepers had started and was caring for 100 people in Northern India with £900 being raised each year. Three people were helping by 1900. They had a hospital in West Bengal and the work was expanding to other countries. The UK Mission now has 87 programmes in 12 countries where leprosy is endemic. They include Niger, Nigeria, Myanmar, Mozambique, Ethiopia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, South Sudan, India, Bangladesh and Nepal. The disease attacks nerve ending, so much of the damage is caused by people not having feeling in their limbs and not realising they have injured themselves. It cannot be caught by touch and is not highly contagious. It is caught from the air as bacteria. It is easier to catch if someone is unhealthy. Every two minutes a new patient is diagnosed. In 2016 there were 216,000 new cases but it is curable. There has been an effective antibiotic since 1982 and it is not expensive to treat. £3 a month can pay for a cure and give someone their life back. It takes six to twelve months to cure. It has not been indigenous in the UK since 1798 but around 12 cases are diagnosed in the UK every year in people coming from overseas. There are still laws in some countries where anyone with the disease is put out of society and not allowed a normal life. It means they do not want to know if they have it. If caught in the early stages it can be cured without lasting damage. Otherwise there can be nerve damage, paralysis, injury and infection with conditions such as clawed hand and dropped foot. The Mission can help people get back to work and be able to earn a living. The charity runs facilities like the leprosy hospital at Anandaban in Nepal that never turns anyone away. That was a struggle in 2015 when the earthquakes brought in an extra 40,000 but they were helped with extra facilities with three large tents from Unicef. They provide treatment, reconstructive surgery, rehabilitation with physiotherapy and special aids, and advocacy to get back to family life. They also provide training to recognise the early signs and quickly seek treatment. A programme of research is trying to find a vaccine. Jayne asked that people look at the website and see how they can help. She was thanked by Rotarian Derek Robinson.