Tag Archives: maternal health

Making Mother’s Day a happy one for women in the developing world

Posted on by
Reply

By Benedict David, Principal Health Advisor, AusAID

Sadly, having enough food for their families to eat, water to  drink and a school for their children to attend will be enough reason for  millions of mothers in the developing world to celebrate this Sunday. That’s if they even make it through childbirth.

Mother sits with child

A mother sits with her baby who is suffering from Malaria in the waiting room of St Michaels Guilleme Community Hospital in Malawi, 2009. Australian volunteers donate their time and skills as nurses and pharmacists to help train local staff and manage the high volume of patients. Photo: Kate Holt/Africa Practice

According to Save the Children’s 2012 State of the World’s Mothers report released this week, over half of all births are not attended by skilled health personnel and, on average, 1 in 30 women will die from  pregnancy-related causes.

The needs of pregnant women in the developing world are no different to those in wealthy countries like Australia. However, while Australia has on average $3000 to $3500 dollars per person for health care per year, developing countries such as PNG have no more than $30 to $40 dollars for health care per person per year. Less than 25 per cent of births are attended by skilled health personnel in Afghanistan, Chad, Laos and Nepal. In Ethiopia, this number is even lower at only six per cent.

Australia is working hard to turn this situation around and give mothers in poor countries a chance. Australia supports maternal health programs in Papua New Guinea, Cambodia, Bangladesh, Solomon Islands, Indonesia, East Timor, Pakistan, Philippines, Vietnam, Tanzania, Afghanistan, Nepal and across the Pacific.

Continue reading →

Helping babies cry

Posted on by
1

By Jenny Da Rin, Assistant Director General, Education and Health, AusAID

On a recent trip to Bangladesh I had the opportunity to visit a health clinic to see how the health of women, children and babies in a poor village was improving with Australian aid. The clinic we visited is in a village in Sreepur, a hot, bumpy and frankly scary two-hour drive out of Dhaka.

Upon arriving in Sreepur, we were greeted by the entire village and formally welcomed by a village elder who proudly told us that he had provided the land for the clinic and the community had contributed to its construction. He offered the land because he wanted to find a way to improve the health of his community and saw that a clinic could achieve that. BRAC, a Bangladeshi non-government organisation and UNICEF support the operation of clinics like this one, together with the Ministry of Health. Australia is contributing by providing maternal, neonatal and child health care in several low performing districts through BRAC and UNICEF. Around 50,000 community health workers and volunteers are trained and sent to support women during pregnancy and childbirth, and newborn care.

Young mothers with their babies.

Young mothers in Sreepur learn what vaccinations their babies need, when and why vaccination is important. Photo: Jenny Da Rin / AusAID

The clinic in Sreepur is a really good example of how a poor community in a developing country benefits from our help. The clinic provides a range of services to several villages that include health checks and information on issues like nutrition, hygiene, family planning and vaccinations. A doctor from the nearest hospital visits regularly to check on pregnant women and assists in delivering babies. The doctor can deal with more serious medical conditions or can refer cases to hospital when necessary. It’s a routine we are familiar with and expect in Australia, but in a country where the health system hasn’t always worked and where maternal and child deaths have been very high, this clinic is a remarkable achievement.

Continue reading →