Kenyans turn to the internet to raise money for their medical bills

As the cost of healthcare rises, even for those who are insured, many Kenyans are turning to the internet for help.

One such Kenyan, Jenifer Ngure and her siblings, started a fundraiser on Facebook for their ailing mother after what they thought would be a manageable bill, went out of reach.

The 82-year-old Aurelia Ngure slipped and fell in the house where she lives with Jenifer in February. It was a little accident, but was compounded by age and arthritis. She was rushed to hospital, where she was diagnosed with a fracture of a bone near her hip, and surgery was recommended. After surgery, she was due for discharge, but her condition took a drastic turn for the worse.

“We had anticipated paying Sh300, 000, but she developed complications and was admitted to the intensive care unit,” Jenifer told HealthyNation.

Last Tuesday, the bill had shot to a staggering Sh8.5 million, leading Jenifer and her siblings to seek help from well-wishers on social media. So far they have managed to raise Sh500, 000.

Many Kenyans who are staring at steep medical bills that are beyond their ability to pay, have linked their social media campaigns to crowdfunding sites to deal with the issue of transparency, because donators can see how much is being raised, who has contributed and how much they have contributed. Jenifer sought help through gofundme.com and shared her fundraiser on her social media pages.

HEALTH AND EDUCATION

GoFundMe is an international crowdfunding site where well-wishers can contribute through PayPal or credit/debit cards. Locally, platforms like M-changa, are an option for people who need a transparent and centralised way to fundraise for various causes, including medical bills, with donations being done using mobile money.

Asking friends, acquaintances and strangers online for help is often a measure of last resort, especially when health insurance covers from either private insurance companies or the national insurer, National Hospital Insurance Fund, or both, run out leaving the patients and their caregivers to their own devices.

This was the case for Jenifer’s mum and is the case for Aghan Meshak who shared the plight of his aunt Beatrice Omondi on Facebook with a plea to raise Sh2 million for surgery in India, that would help her walk again after an accident that robbed her of her mobility and her job.

“She has had more than 10 surgeries, and my uncle (her husband) is now at the end of the tether, and all he is doing is ‘watching her die’”

According to it’s website, since its launch in 2012 local fundraising site M-Changa has had 1, 801 fundraisers channelled through its platform, mostly seeking to raise money for medical bills and education, among other mostly personal financial problems. Medical fundraisers represent 40 per cent of the appeals initiated through M-Changa.

While such fundraisers depend on the goodwill of people who resonate with the pain of the person in need, there have been some cases of fraud, where an individual raised funds for a medical cause, and failed to account for the money.

However, this has not put a damper on the heart of giving among Kenyans, some of whom declare Tenda wema, nenda zako meaning that as long as you are doing good, you shouldn’t be too bothered by what happens with the money afterwards since you did your part.