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Sister Marie Blanche Kambirée: At the Service of Children [1]

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Date: 2024-05

Nanoro – Sister Marie Blanche Kambire has more than 20 years of experience as a. At 53, she lives in Nanoro, a rural area 85 kilometers west of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso’s capital. A Catholic nun, she has dedicated her life to serving others, particularly the children she has cared for over the past 12 years at the Nanoro Medical Centre, where she heads the paediatric unit.

Unconditional Commitment

Marie Blanche’s vocation was born from her faith, and throughout her career, her focus has been on caring for children. “As a Catholic nun, it’s a dual calling for me. I've been called to serve others, and in this response to God's call, I've had the desire to care for the most vulnerable, the little ones.”

She cares for children aged zero to five years and sometimes older, feeding them and providing treatment for illnesses such as malnutrition, malaria and respiratory infections. For her, children represent the future, and it's essential to provide them with the best possible care.

“When a child is sick, you can see it. And when they’re healthy again, you can see that too. The child is innocent, and that means a lot to me. I feel a great love for them, and it's a joy for me to provide them with the best possible care.”

Sister Kambire’s work goes beyond just feeding and providing medical care. Her day-to-day role involves listening, consoling, caring, relieving and educating. Besides the children, she also attends to mothers and caregivers. “Sometimes, they just need a listening ear, even a simple hello. This attention we give them relieves them and helps refocus their efforts and minds to support us in caring for the children.”

Courage in the face of challenges

Because of her position and her daily work, she is well-placed to know the challenges faced by healthcare staff, especially in rural areas. Among these is the instability of healthcare staff, who are frequently rotated.

“There are changes in staff every two months, six months, or a year. They come, then they leave, and others come. This means that training must constantly be renewed. Everyone wants to move to the city, and no one wants to stay in rural areas,” she laments. “We hope to receive and train healthcare workers who can stay for at least five years to help us in our work with some stability.”

The Nanoro Medical Centre experiences periods of high patient influx, usually from July to November, especially with common ailments like malaria. These are times when Marie Blanche and her colleagues are overwhelmed with work, making it difficult to reach certain patients.

“Sometimes we can see up to 50 patients a day. There aren't enough of us to meet all the dneeds, and there's also a lack of transport means. Especially during the rainy season, some mothers and children cannot reach us due to the condition of the roads. Ideally, it's up to us to go and help them, but sometimes we don't have the means to reach them and treat them. That's why many of the children come late for consultations.”



Quality care above all

In the Sister Kambire is also responsible for the quality of care. She constantly advocates for a standard of quality.

For her quality of work, her commitment to health, and her dedication, Sister Marie Blanche was awarded the WHO prize in the African Region. She received this award in August 2023 on the side-lines of the Seventy-third session of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa for her services to public health.

Sister Kambire’s commitment to children remains unwavering. “I will continue to fight for the most vulnerable, especially children, for their health and for their lives. When I see the relief of the mothers and the smiles of the children, it fills me with joy. That is my happiness.”

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[1] Url: https://www.afro.who.int/countries/burkina-faso/news/sister-marie-blanche-kambiree-service-children

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