The House of Light on the Hill, affiliated to the Fraternidade – International Humanitarian Federation, has promoted a therapeutic voluntary group service to take relief to the cancer patients assisted by the Association of Volunteers Living Life (Associação de Voluntários Vida Viva), in the city of Boa Esperança, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The activity was conducted on Thursday, July 28, by a team of volunteers integrated by two doctors, one dentist, five therapists and two assistants.
40 people were assisted, among oncological patients and volunteers of the Associação Vida Viva. Altogether there were 12 dental treatments, 11 medical treatments, 15 therapeutic treatments and two home treatments.
The procedures applied were basically oriented to the relief of physical and emotional pain, to the reestablishment of balance of the being to overcome the states of sadness, anguish, depression and stress, and to better face the health situations of each one. This is how Nirvania described it, one of the members of the therapeutic team that arrived from Jundiaí, state of São Paulo, to offer collaboration.
The techniques employed were systemic acupuncture with and without needles, auricular acupuncture, cupping glass, chromotherapy, adhesive tape therapy, aromatherapy and moxatherapy. According to Nirvania, systemic acupuncture is used to regain balance and help people better face their situations; the technique of the cupping glass is used to relieve pains and acts in seven levels of the body for seven days; the adhesive tape therapy is also used for pains. Aromatherapy, with essential oils, is useful in cases of depression, emotional instability and sadness; moxatherapy helps fighting swelling.
The Association of Volunteers Vida Viva has been working in Boa Esperança for four years, counts on 25 volunteers and one worker, and lives on donations and on resources obtained from the management of a bazaar and the promoting of charitable activities. It helps oncological patients of the community with free physiotherapy sessions (on Fridays), appointment of medical consultations at hospitals of the region and laboratory tests (agreement with a laboratory that only charges for the studies made in Belo Horizonte, state capital). It also provides medicine for free for those who cannot pay and a food stamp once a week. At its headquarters, the patients can spend their time learning and doing several artisanship techniques.
It has nowadays the register of 110 patients assisted. Of these, 25 were added this year, while 15 were discharged for death.
