In Nigeria, many of the poor cannot obtain medical treatment, not because physicians are unwilling to provide care, but because medicines and hospital charges must be paid for. For patients with no income, no family support, and no access to credit, hospitalization is almost impossible.
Into that gap steps Sister Ursula Anunobi.
When she finds sick and injured individuals in need of care, she takes them to the hospital and promises to pay the physicians and the hospital for the treatment they receive. In cases where mobility has been lost due to injury, illness, or amputation, Sister Ursula also provides wheelchairs or other mobility devices so patients can return home with dignity rather than remain bedridden.
Her care does not end at admission. Sister Ursula visits the people she brings to the hospital, follows up with their doctors, advocates for attentive treatment, and ensures that they receive the medicines necessary for recovery. For patients with no one else to speak for them, her presence makes all the difference.
These photos show two patients under her care. Like many she encounters, they would have had no path to treatment without Sister Ursula’s intervention. Through the generosity of donors and the hope of the Gospel, the sick in Abakaliki are not abandoned.
The Sisters of the Poor Foundation exists for a single purpose: to support this work.