OSHIKULUFITU - A 35-year-old mother from Oshikulufitu in the Omusati region has appealed for assistance from Good Samaritans to come to the aid of her ailing daughter who is suffering from a condition called hydrocephalus. 

Hydrocephalus is a condition in which an accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid occurs within the brain causing increased pressure in the brain. 

The two-year old Hilde Heita was just a normal child at birth, but things fast changed between two to three months when her head started growing big. 

Hilde last received treatment when she was a few months old as the Oshakati Intermediate Hospital does not have shunts to remove water from her head. 
The shunt is the pipe required to remove the water from her head. 

“The last time I went to the hospital a year ago, I was told the hospital would call me when the “pipes” shunts become available,” said Martha Heita. 
The same hospital is allegedly asking Heita to pay N$30 000 to secure a shunt or wait until they give her a call. 

In the absence of medical assistance, her daughter’s head has grown big, but she cannot afford N$30 000 as both she and her husband are unemployed. 
Meanwhile, the two-year-old daughter cannot do anything on her own and solely rely on her family for assistance. 

According to the mother, she can move some parts of her body, but she cannot sit, as the pressure on her head is too much. 

In addition to medical assistance, the family is also pleading to the Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare for the toddler to be registered for social grant. 

At the moment, the mother said she does not receive anything despite applying for a grant a long time a go. 
The family was allegedly informed that there was something wrong with their application. 
Further attempts were also made to get the toddler assistance from several offices, but none came to her rescue.