Established in 2000, the MCCEE Foundation has made remarkable achievements despite its limited resources. It started with a group of dedicated paediatricians in Samarkand, who embarked on a mission to prevent childhood diseases, focusing on countering rickets. The collaboration with Dr Alisher Rasulov (paediatrician in Samarkand) revealed a trend of children showing symptoms related to vitamin D deficiency. These young childrenwere prone to infections and their bones were less developed. This often led to hospital admissions and outpatient visits.

Vitamin D deficiency in children is striking in a country like Uzbekistan with abundant sunlight. Traditionally, however, children are actually protected from intense sunlight. It is an age-old custom for newborns to spend their first months in a “bishek”, a covered cradle. However, this traditional practice hampers the production of vitamin D in the skin.

Dr Rob Pereira (paediatrician in Rotterdam) and nurse and translator Marianne de Wit initiated a study by Dutch junior doctors. This study involved collecting blood samples from children who visited Dr Rasulov’s policlinic. In the Netherlands, the samples were analysed for vitamin D and iron levels. The children were then given the appropriate doses of vitamin D, resulting in remarkable improvements after only six weeks. The findings underlined that even in a “desert-like” environment, vitamin D deficiency can be frequent and that simple, affordable, supplementation can alleviate suffering.

This pioneering research was documented and revealed a remarkable improvement in infant health and a reduction in infection-related hospital admissions. The success of the initiative sparked the interest of the people of Samarkand and led to requests for similar help.

Over two decades, the situation evolved positively, with a strong focus on disease prevention and improved accessibility to supplements. Whereas in 2000 the distribution of vitamin D still depended on pills made available by the medicine factory in Olst, the Netherlands, currently the availability of vitamin D in Samarkand isn’t an obstacle any more.

The project currently focuses on education, with the cooperation of Uzbek and Dutch paediatricians at the forefront.

A unique and successful twist was the integration of hospital clowns. To ensure the continuity of clowning in hospitals, a training program was set up and is still ongoing thanks to sponsoring by Cliniclowns Netherlands, Foundation Wakkere Wakkie and MCCEE sponsors. For information on the hospital clown activities of MCCEE see this page.

The project further diversified its impact by launching anti-smoking campaigns with baby T-shirts with messages like “I was born a non-smoker”.

Originally, the intention was to transfer the Samarkand project to the local government with organisations like UNICEF. Recent developments, including the pandemic, hampered this process. But due to strong ties with Samarkand medical professionals, including Dr Alisher Rasulov, Azamat Rachimov and Uktam Rustamov (young doctor with extensive knowledge of telemedicine), preventive efforts are continuing.

The achievements and ambitions of the MCCEE Foundation are described below:

• Providing vitamin D and iron supplements to expectant mothers, during the nine months of pregnancy and the first year of the child’s life
• Providing education through lectures to local doctors.
• Development of promotional materials such as a film, brochure and website, partly supported by private funding and by Kiwanis Netherlands.
• Infrastructural improvements such as the installation of a water supply in a hospital.
• Producing an educational magazine in the local language for medical professionals.
• Provision of computers to facilitate international cooperation.
• Cooperation between Uzbek and Dutch hospital clowns, strengthening local hospital clown initiatives.
• Innovative supplementation of vitamins, iron, iodine and calcium in delicious biscuits.

The history of the MCCEE Foundation underscores resilience and dedication, with a legacy of positive transformations and an ongoing commitment to powerful healthcare initiatives initiated by the local colleagues.