February 29 will be remembered in the life of Doctor Samuel Ndayishimiye, known to many as Dr Sam, a gynecologist who helped many women to successfully deliver living babies since 2012.
In 2013, he got married, hopping to also have own children, as he used to see other parents being blessed and returning home with a smile after helping them.
But, Alas! he had to wait for several years.
“We waited for the first year, and it was still fair, but with time, we felt that something was wrong and started worrying,” says Ndayishimiye.
“After giving birth, women used to give me thankful messages with words like: urakabyara(may you also bear children), but I would receive it with mixed reaction because I knew that for me, it was not working,” he testified after the birth of his twin baby girls.
Right after the medical school from Kampala International university, he started the work from Nyamata district hospital and gave his very best to help women. He became very successful to an extent that he would be given a nickname of ‘Imana y’abagore’ or the god of women, just to mean that he was an indispensable gynecologist.
In Kigali where he is still working, he kept the record, but having his first children was a story on its own.
It has been a long and difficult journey. After marriage, the family of Sam believed that they could get the first born within one year, but it did not work.
With time, they started being discouraged, but the doctor kept the heart and continued to do his job properly. It reached a point where they went to seek medication, and they were told that they were alright, and had to only wait.
After nine years, they started exploring more options and went for In Vitro Fecondation (IVFs).
“In 2021, we tried, but my wife got complications and Doctors opted for abortion to save her life. Last year, we gave it a try again, and here we are,” he said.
“We are very thankful to my family and my in-laws. They were very patients and not harassing us as it us the case in our culture when a couple does not bare children. My mother prayed hard and was hopeful.”
Doctor Sam is also very thankful to his workmates who helped him through and encouraged him not to give up, because sometimes, he would feel really down.
“I am encouraged to do my work much harder,” he said.
