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Why We Help

We are simply passionate about helping children in need. They are innocent in their predicament, and despite their pain, whether physical or emotional, they deal with it as best they can, and often put on a brave smile. Most of us are immeasurably more fortunate in our lives in terms of social stature, homely comforts and life experiences, and so, how can we not help these children however we can. They, like most of us, did not choose where and when to be born.

Before Blue Sky was founded, our initial team was fortunate to have many opportunities to visit orphanages around China. Over time, we won the trust of the orphanage directors and they believed that we could help the children, where they could not. Sometimes simply due to lack of staff, or resources for surgeries, some children would receive treatment too late.

For example

• Babies with cleft lips who are waiting for surgery. Because they have difficulty eating, they don't gain weight easily. Because they don't gain weight, the doctors don't want to do surgery so they wait for them to get stronger. This cycle continues because the caregivers may not know the best way to feed them, have the proper equipment or the time it takes to feed one of these children.
• Children with disabilities who do not receive the needed rehabilitation to reach their full potential. This means a child who can be taught to feed himself, talk or walk, does not learn these important skills.
• Children who have received orthopedic surgeries but no rehabilitation or care afterwards. Without proper therapy they often relapse to their previous condition or develop new problems.
• Children who are waiting for surgery for spina bifida, congenital problems with their intestines, clubfeet and many other problems. They are often waiting due to lack of money and assistance, lack of proper medical care in their small hometown, or a place to stay if they have to come to Beijing.
• and many more...

To be effective, both rehabilitation and medical care require close supervision and individualised attention, which mean more time and staff for each child. Currently many orphanages and foster homes are unable to provide this special treatment due to the number of children in their care and lack of funds.

Our grand plan is to give these children the help they need to recover and reach their full potential. We may have the child stay with us to gain weight, so that he is strong enough to undergo surgery. We may house a child after surgery to watch for complications or take care of special needs such as sterile bandage changes. We may have a child stay with us after surgery so that he can be close to his doctor in Beijing for follow up. We may provide physical therapy to a child with cerebral palsey, or a baby slow to develop due to Downs Syndrome or blindness.

To aid the children, we must also provide their caregivers with the knowledge, skills and basic resources to help the child. A caregiver for each child is encouraged to stay with us at our home, so they may learn to change the bandages, monitor the condition, or learn the rehabilitation skills to help the child develop. We hope that by including the caregiver we can ensure continued good care once the child leaves our home. Also, we encourage the caregiver to use her new skills to help other children in her orphanage. In cases where a caregiver from the orphanage cannot accompany a child, our staff will care for the children with love and special attention.

 

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