When I was having home care after my ostomy surgery, I remember telling one of the nurses how lucky I feel to have all the support and supplies available to me. She told me a story about what some ostomates in India and other underdeveloped countries have to go through when they get a stoma.
Update: Stoma Aid has unfortunately been shut down. You can read the press release here.
My jaw dropped as she explained that some people are told to bring the lids of jars and plastic food bags to use as an appliance. This is the unfortunate reality for large percentage of ostomates in underdeveloped countries who live below the poverty line, and have no other alternatives but to come up with DIY solutions.
There is a new campaign, which is being led by the Colostomy Association in the UK called Stoma Aid, that is focused on bringing more supplies to those in need, and raising awareness about these problems. Currently, there’s an Indiegogo campaign that’s being used to help raise the £22,000 (approx. CDN$41,000) needed to get this project off the ground. The funding campaign will end on July 1st, 2015, so if you’re interested and able to help, please support the cause.
Further Reading
- The people that the ostomy industry forgot: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3459765/
- What to Do with Unused Ostomy Supplies?
