SILRA HomeSILRA HomeSingapore Leprosy Relief Association

80 Buang Kok View, Singapore 534191

SILRA HomeSILRA Home

The SILRA Home was founded in 1971.

It is committed to improving life of

ex-leprosy victims in Singapore

through providing them with a home, basic care and love.

The SILRA Home was built through public donations and officially opened on 4th September 1971 by the Late President of Singapore Dr. B. H. Sheares.

The Home provides food, lodging, recreation and healthcare services for ex-leprosy patients. It also teaches the patients some handicraft skills and rehabilitative work.

Eligibility criteria are ex-leprosy sufferers who are destitute.

Ultimately, the residents want to be treated as an equal, as a normal person like you and me.

The first successful treatment for leprosy was Promin, used by Dr. Guy Faget at the U.S. Public Health Service Hospital in Carville, USA, in 1941.

Prior to this time, hope had been largely dependent on chaulmoogra oil, various folk remedies and patent medicines.  

Leprosy can be curedLeprosy can be curedYoung man with MDT

blister pack, Bangladesh. Courtesy The Leprosy Mission International (TLMI)

In 1981, the advent of multi-drug therapy (MDT), a combination of rifampicin, clofazimine and dapsone, made a more rapid cure possible.  

Disabilities can be Disabilities can be preventedprevented

Early diagnosis and treatment can prevent the disabilities traditionally associated with leprosy. Ongoing research into leprosy reactions and nerve injuries provide hope for even better methods of ensuring early diagnosis and the prevention of disabilities.

Families never need to be Families never need to be separatedseparated

Most people have a natural immunity to leprosy.

Ernest Cabanos Jr. and son, Philippines.  Photo by Pamela Parlapiano

Families never need to be Families never need to be separatedseparated

Leprosy is not transmitted through casual contact.

Geraldo Lourenco (far right) with family and friends, USA. Photo by Pamela

Parlapiano  

Leprosy can be cured ..Leprosy can be cured ..

"I had Hansen’s Disease and in 1992 I was cured. The message I have for the people who have this disease is that they should like themselves, get treatment and get cured

There is a cure for Hansen’s Disease--it depends only on you." --Ryani Claudia Barros, Brazil  

Because leprosy, a bacterial disease, can be treated with specialized antibiotics that are supplied free by the Novartis pharmaceutical company.

Depending on symptoms, leprosy is often initially misdiagnosed as arthritis or lupus. Painful facial lesions, which are less common, can have many causes; in the Uganda man’s case, doctors said, his immune system probably formed nodules around bacteria next to a facial nerve.

Oct 24, 2006. The New York Times

1. International Leprosy Associationhttp://www.leprosy-ila.org/socialconcerns.php2. International Organization for Integration,

Dignity, Economic Advancementhttp://www.idealeprosydignity.org/aboutlep/

aboutlep2.htm

TodayTodayWrite down on the piece of paper your feelings now… what are you expecting (to see … feel… react) do you have any fears or concerns?

*Name

"Experience is not what happens to a man;

it is what a man does with what happened to him." Aldous Huxley

“Experience is not what happens to a man; it is what a man does with what happened to him.” Aldous Huxley

EXPERIENCE REFLECTION

The Mirror (A clear reflection of the Self)Who am I? What are my values? What have I learned about myself through this experience? Do I have more/less understanding or empathy than I did before volunteering? In what ways, if any, has your sense of self, your values, your sense of "community," your willingness to serve others, and your self-confidence/self-esteem been impacted or altered through this experience?

The Mirror (A clear reflection of the Self)Have your motivations for volunteering changed? In what ways? How has this experience challenged stereotypes or prejudices you have/had? Any realizations, insights, or especially strong lessons learned or half-glimpsed? Will these experiences change the way you act or think in the future? Have you given enough, opened up enough, cared enough? How have you challenged yourself, your ideals, your philosophies, your concept of life or of the way you live?

The Microscope (Makes the small experience large)What happened? Describe your experience. What would you change about this situation if you were in charge? What have you learned about this agency, these people, or the community? Was there a moment of failure, success, indecision, doubt, humor, frustration, happiness, sadness? Do you feel your actions had any impact? What more needs to be done? Does this experience compliment or contrast with what you're learning in class? How? Has learning through experience taught you more, less, or the same as the class? In what ways?

The Binoculars (Makes what appears distant, appear closer)From your service experience, are you able to identify any underlying or overarching issues which influence the problem? What could be done to change the situation? How will this alter your future behaviors/attitudes/and career? How is the issue/agency you're serving impacted by what is going on in the larger political/social sphere? What does the future hold? What can be done?