Power of One: Meet Lorna

At the clinic, Lorna was tested and treated for malaria and later discharged with advice from doctors to take the full course of treatment. They also advised her and her family to sleep under their mosquito nets every night for protection.
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Lorna is much like your typical 10-year-old girl. She's extremely shy and hides behind her incredibly long eyelashes. Her legs -- long and skinny -- appear as if they sprouted overnight. Her bright, orange ruffle dress is one of the things that make her stand out apart from the other more casually-dressed kids in Lusenga village.

Playing "keep away" with the other kids and jumping sky high for the ball, you'd never guess Lorna had a serious case of malaria one year ago.

Late one night last August, Lorna wasn't feeling well and her mother noticed she was burning up -- her skin was extremely warm to the touch. Recognizing something was wrong, her parents wisely decided to get her to the nearest clinic as soon as possible. Like most villagers in Africa, Lorna's family doesn't have a motorized vehicle, so Lorna's father took her by bicycle to Kossam Chunduluka Rural Health Center four miles away.

At the clinic, Lorna was tested and treated for malaria and later discharged with advice from doctors to take the full course of treatment. They also advised her and her family to sleep under their mosquito nets every night for protection against bites from mosquitoes that carry the malaria parasite.

Due to the life-saving test and treatment and the quick thinking of her parents, Lorna made a full recovery. Now she is a healthy, vital child and back to her normal routine. She draws and tacks up pictures of her favorite animal -- a bunny rabbit. In the mornings, she cooks with her mother and they sing together. And she's quickly gaining wins on "keep away," being one of the taller girls in her small village.

Lorna is back to doing what kids do -- which is exactly what Malaria No More's Power of One (Po1) campaign set out to do: Ensure every child in Zambia has access to life-saving tests and treatment so they can get back to being kids. Thankfully, because the clinic had a rapid diagnostic test to confirm Lorna did in fact have malaria, and a full-course of child treatment on hand to cure her of the deadly disease, Lorna is a happy and healthy child today.

However, that isn't the case for many children in Zambia. In fact, every minute a child still dies from malaria.

But YOU have the power to change that.

Through Power of One, each dollar you donate goes towards a malaria test and treatment for a child in Zambia. It's a simple donation. And a simple decision. The only thing you have to decide is how many lives you'll save today?

While donating is simple, the work of delivering these life-saving tests and treatments wouldn't be possible without a network of partners including Novartis, Alere, the Zambian Government, PATH/MACEPA, Peace Corps, the United States President's Malaria Initiative and many more.

Additional information about Malaria No More's Power of One campaign is available here.

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