Getting through the day is not easy for 36-year-old Marvin Wilson who is bedridden from motor neuropathy. The condition, which causes progressive muscle weakness, makes completing everyday tasks difficult. While motor neuropathy cannot be cured, medications and IV treatments have proven to be helpful for managing patients’ symptoms.  

Access to these medical treatments and therapies is minimal in Guyana, where Wilson lives. The country, the size of Idaho, sits above Brazil. Roughly 35% of its population lives below the poverty line, making it one of the most impoverished countries in the western hemisphere. The consequences of inadequate health care extend across the region, from urban slums to rural farms. Wilson’s wife and nephew care for him, but when they are at work, he is limited to the confines of his bed. 

A recent container shipment from Brother’s Brother Foundation supplied medical equipment to Guyana’s Regional Health Services. Wheelchairs, exam tables, hospital recliners and hospital beds were distributed to New Amsterdam Hospital, Skeldon Hospital, National Psychiatric Hospital, and a new health center in Fort Ordinance. 

“I am indeed overwhelmed with your continued generosity in bridging the gap with the less fortunate citizens with our country,” said Dr. Vishalya Sharma, a regional health officer in Guyana. “Know that by partnering with our health system, you have assisted us in fostering good health care delivery to our many patients who we serve.” 

The many patients impacted by the shipment include Wilson—he received one of 16 hospital beds it supplied.

“The hospital bed that I received has allowed me to gain more independence in my day-to-day struggle. I sleep much more comfortably and am able to elevate the bed into a much more suitable position. Thank you,” Wilson said.  

Most of the medical equipment and supplies BBF sends to developing countries originate from Pittsburgh. Local hospitals will donate lightly used exam tables and medical recliners when they replace them with new ones, and people will drop off wheelchairs and walkers at BBF’s Pittsburgh warehouse after relatives pass away. The equipment is later loaded onto a metal shipping container and sent to developing countries, where partner organizations distribute it to hospitals in developing countries. 

Last year BBF shipped 308 hospital beds to countries across the world. Each one had a second life after leaving Pittsburgh. The 16 hospital beds sent to Guyana were no exception—the country’s lack of medical supplies and limited health care takes a toll on family members trying to locate resources for loved ones. When Hermine Croal’s mother, Alma, became bedridden last year, it was the hospital bed from Pittsburgh that made all the difference in her mother’s final days of life. 

“It was a great relief to not only my mother but to me to see that my mother was able to receive what she needed for her quality of life,” Hermine Croal said. “Thank you for the generosity that allowed my mother to live her last days much more comfortably than we would have been able to afford.” 

To donate medical supplies or medical equipment to Brother’s Brother Foundation, please call the office at 412-321-3160.

BBF thanks Food for the Poor for their collaboration on this shipment.