"In Standard Five, her condition got worse so we took her to hospital. Ever since she has been taking a lot of medicine. She developed an ulcer that has never healed. She goes through regular dressing and has never responded to grafting. She even did her KCPE in a hospital bed," Achieng says.
"National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) and Edu-afya have been supportive whenever my daughter is admitted. The fund has cleared bills for medical tests and other procedures but we cannot afford the treatment in India," she says.
"I had a shop dealing with salon products to enable me to nurse Victory but it has since been closed. Currently, we lack the income for food, fees, rent, and upkeep of the other children. It is a burden and unless we are assisted, we might be forced to surrender to fate," she said.
Dream of being a doctor
"I dream of becoming a doctor. The doctors I meet whenever I get admitted have been so compassionate to me. I appeal for assistance from well-wishers since I can no longer concentrate in school like other learners," says Victory.
Victory's mother showed The Standard team a letter from MTRH Eldoret dated April 2023. It indicates that Victory was diagnosed with Sickle Cell disease in 2016 and in 2019, developed a chronic ulcer on her right leg that is getting worse over time.
"Patient is being referred for stem cell transplant," says the letter.