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Dr Sefakor Enam Bankas

Meet the sickle cell warriors

Having a baby usually offers so much joy- an unexplainable happiness that can never be equaled by anything in the world. It is said that a healthy and a happy baby is the greatest gift every parent would love to have.

Unfortunately, sometimes the joy of parents turn sour when they later learn that their bundle of joy has the sickle cell disease (SCD). Although the disease comes with some complications, most people never allowed this to stop them.

They battled SCD with much courage and determination and live each day of their life to the fullest, despite a number of challenges.

Her name is Sefakor, which in Ewe means “God comforts,” and Enam, which means “God has given”. Her life has been one testimony after the other and she has found the comfort of God in times she needed it the most.

“I’ve had it good, being born with sickle cell disease for which I had many odds stacked against me, but the love and support from family, friends and an amazing church family have been wonderful.”

According to Sefakor, she spent quite a lot of time in hospital. “I remember being rushed there many times while in basic school and was prevented from partaking in sports and my mom being overly fussy over me,” she narrated.

Despite the challenges, she wrote the Basic Certificate Examination (BECE) without any incident. “The decision was made to keep me in Accra, close to home. Rather, close to hospital. I was furious. My grades were great, my friends were going to amazing schools and there I was, stuck in Accra, and without the full range of options. I felt sickle cell disease was going to ruin – or run – my life”.

Apparently, it turned out that her mother’s decision to keep her in Accra was brilliant. She started senior high school in the boarding house but nothing could prepare her for that experience.

“I was faced with very hostile school authorities but in that very period, the love of the church family shone through. I always thank God for Miss Margaret Nyame who provided me hot water to bathe daily. Warm water at 4:30 a.m. for a person living with sickle cell disease is a lifesaver,” she mentioned.

She said the cycle continued: admitted, discharged and readmitted after a few days. Her grades plummeted as a result, and she felt so frustrated. Therefore, she said goodbye to boarding school.

Senior high was singlehandedly the most unpleasant period in her life. “Yet, God came through in grand style again, even during WASSCE when I was in such excruciating pain during my Core Mathematics paper. It’s a miracle I passed.

 Recounting her story, she said she was driven straight to the emergency room from the examination hall to begin a three-day admission there. Unfortunately, she was ordered only to be discharged on the morning of her next paper. “I really couldn’t afford to miss any papers. I was trying to get into medical school.”

Life at Medical School

At the Medical School, it was the same old challenges, including new sickle cell complications. During her final examination at the medical school, she fell ill again.

“I resisted getting admitted so hard because I wanted a different testimony. I wanted to be able to say I wrote a major examination without breaking down completely, but God had other plans.”

Dr Bankas said friends and church family had to persuade her to go to the emergency for treatment on the night before her Surgery Finals. She said she was so distraught, but God spoke to her through her doctor.

“It was simple. Had He not done it for me before? Had I not been admitted during major exams and still passed? Had he not brought me to medical school? All I had to do was believe and have faith. No doubt. This was not beyond him.”

To the glory of God, she passed all her papers and she is now a full medical doctor. (Dr Sefakor Enam Bankas).

With such a remarkable story, Dr Bankas tries to inspire others like herself with stories like hers. Stories of persons living with sickle cell disease who are beating the odds, living with sickle cell disease. These experiences have spawned a blog and many other ideas.

She is the founder of Sickle Life, a Sickle Cell Disease advocacy group.  “It’s fulfilling that through Sickle Life I can inspire others to aspire to do more despite these challenges. I think God may just have led me to my calling”.

Dr Bankas who is the only child of her parents spoke highly of her mother Madam Eleanor Odeamah, a retired nurse whose constant care and support made her live a healthy and normal life and also a keen supporter of her advocacy activities.

“For as far as I can remember, I have always known I had Sickle Cell Disease. My dad is a doctor and my mom is a nurse so from a young age I have always understood some basic concepts about the disease.

What I did not understand, however, was why it had to be me. But I thank God for my life, my family and how far He has brought me as an individual. This disease does not just affect a person.

It also affects their family because when a child is in pain, parents are also in pain. Parents cannot sleep until they ensure that their child is well,” Dr Anthony Anemana.

Dr Anemana is a person living with Sickle Cell Disease and a real inspiration to many through his selflessness and excellence despite his challenges.

 

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He was the Overall Best Student in Surgery for the University of Ghana School of Medicine and Dentistry, Class of 2015.

“I don’t remember much from my earlier years, but all I know is that I did not fall sick until I entered senior high school. Even though I never had any episodes of crises in my primary and junior high schools,” he stated.

According to him, he was limited in his participation in sporting activities, which he says he understands now, but did not then. “After all, which 10-year-old boy would understand if you told him he was not allowed to play football?” he asked.

The difficult part of the disease for him started while he was in the senior high school. He attended the Presbyterian Boys Senior High School at Legon as a boarder.

For him, this is a fairly decent school. However, he had an episode of crisis almost twice every term.

This made high school very difficult for him because it usually took about a week for him to recover fully and return to school.

Dr Anemana has two other siblings of which the eldest among is also SS while the other is not.

"Whereas there are stories of triumph, many children are not as fortunate as us.  They do not receive the quality of care we have and are not able to reach their full potential.

We encourage everyone to get educated about sickle cell disease and get tested early to be able to make informed choices regarding Sickle Cell disease."

He is thankful to the Lord for how far He has brought him.

According to Dr Anemana, he does not where he would have been without God’s grace.

He is also thankful to his parents for being there for him every step of the way and he never fails to forget Mr and Mrs Dwamena who helped him through the difficult years in senior high school and all those who have supported him in diverse ways throughout the years.

About Sickle Life

Sickle Life is a Sickle Cell Disease advocacy group which aims at providing education and information about sickle cell disease to empower the general public to make informed decisions about Sickle Cell Disease.

My Sickle Life is a series that provides a platform for persons living with sickle cell disease, their relatives, friends and anybody who has experience with the sickle life to share it for the purposes of awareness creation and stigmatisation prevention.

“We are currently embarking on a tour in partnership with INSPYA Ghana and the Jessie Dadzie Foundation to Sompre and surrounding communities in the Western Region of Ghana to provide general health screening and testing as well as Sickle Cell talks to educate the youth,” she disclosed.

The foundation which can be reached through www. sicklife.org is planning towards the World Sickle Cell Day which is slated for June 19.

“We welcome any support and sponsorship from corporate Ghana and the general public.”

What’s Sickle Cell?

Sickle cell disease. It's a strange sounding name — but the word "sickle" doesn't come from "sick." The disease got this name because it causes blood cells to be curved or C-shaped, like the shape of an old-fashioned farm tool called a sickle.

Normally, blood cells are round and look a bit like donuts. In people with sickle cell disease, some of the red blood cells harden and curve. They also break down faster than healthy red blood cells and can clog a person's small blood vessels. This causes severe pain, called a "pain crisis."

A pain crisis can last for a few moments, a few days, or even longer. Medications can help lessen the pain. People with sickle cell disease can develop anaemia. They also may have some jaundice.

Sickle cell disease is inherited. People are born with it. It‘s not contagious, so you can't catch it from someone.

Sickle cell disease is a life-long health condition.  Sickle cell disease does not have a cure- The only known cure available for Sickle cell disease is a bone marrow transplant which all though successful is out of reach for many persons with the disease.

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