My name is Blandine Furaha Umutoni, 21 years old girl who lives in Musanze - Rwanda, and I have been living with Asthma for 18 years.

 

First of all, it was not allowed to go to the hospital without a permit, so my parents were the ones to request permission. It took me a long time, and the disease complication was getting too serious because of the delay. When we got permission, we met traffic police and stopped us, which affected me so badly.

 

I have been taking the treatment and medicines from Polyclinique La Medicale, known as Dr. Kanimba Hospital in Musanze, before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. There is no significant change except the shortage of medicine where one Pharmacy has the treatment only in the whole Musanze town.

 

Transport was one of the significant challenges, especially when I had Asthma complications. It took me between 10 to 15 minutes before the pandemic to reach the hospital, but around 1 hour during the pandemic.

 

COVID-19 has affected my family’s economic status, for my mother lost her job. Also, I am worried that if COVID-19 stays like this or increases, there would be a financial crisis. I think there would be a big impact on Rwandans. For instance, we are not studying, and many people lost jobs that were supporting their families. 

 

I think that getting the vaccine and vaccinating all people can bring life to normal as before the pandemic.

 

I recommend increasing the number of Hospitals with Asthma treatment and medicines countrywide. For that reason, a person with serious complications can get urgent treatment. When I use a Nasal Spray, I might come to Kigali to get it. Therefore, there would also be a higher availability and accessibility of medicine.