Kenyan Teachers In Tanzania Fired Over Skin Disease
A high school educator hailing from Kimilili, Bungoma County, grappling with an uncommon skin ailment, confronts exclusion and joblessness.
For confidentiality reasons, let’s refer to her as Nancy. She shares that her companions have forsaken her, and even her father, who had been supporting her medical care, has given up.
In an exclusive conversation with Citizen Digital, Nancy narrates how she was lately turned away and her employment terminated after her employer found out about her Atopic Dermatitis, a skin condition marked by parched, itchy, and irritated skin.
Nancy is a certified English and Literature teacher for high school students and was recently recruited by an international school in Tanzania. Hopeful for an improved life, she traveled to Tanzania for her new role.
Upon her arrival, the school administration discovered her condition and terminated her contract, citing concerns about potential risks to students and staff.
Nancy, with teary eyes, stresses that her condition is non-communicable. However, the school still ended her agreement.
Their decision was rooted in their belief that she posed a danger to fellow students and those around her. Consequently, she had to return home to her family.
Since the onset of her illness in 2011, during her second year of high school, this has been her regular experience.
The ailment started in one of Nancy’s joints and has since spread across most of her body, making her vulnerable to discrimination wherever she goes.
She reveals that her appearance has hindered her job search. Furthermore, her friends speculated that she had HIV and was involved with substances like Marijuana.
She explains that they didn’t understand her situation being beyond her control, and she underscores her attempts to treat her condition.
Nancy has been in and out of the hospital, and the treatment has taken a toll on her.
As a single mother, her child’s father left when the condition persisted. Nonetheless, she asserts that she hasn’t transmitted the disease to her child or siblings she lives with.
“Merely consulting a doctor costs around KSh3,000. On top of that, medications are even more expensive. I’m desperate for a solution to my problem,” she says, tears welling up.
Nancy is now appealing to kind-hearted individuals for assistance in obtaining treatment for her ailment.
Kenyan Teachers In Tanzania Fired Over Skin Disease
