A Clean Bed, Anesthesia, and Other Small Comforts We Can Give Mali ’s Moms

May 23, 2017An assessment of health facilities found entire wards devoid of equipment and supplies. We can do better.Can you imagine walking into a hospital room, pregnant and scared, and seeing broken medical monitors, stained beds, and sticks being used as IV poles?For many women in rural Mali, this is a reality —and one of the only alternatives to suffering at home, away from the watchful eyes and skillful hands of trained health workers.In Mali, high fertility, low use of modern contraceptive methods, early marriage, and a tendency for women to give birth at home place an estimated 2,400 women per year at high risk of obstetric fistula —a debilitating childbirth injury that’s virtually nonexistent in wealthier countries. Most of these women live in rural areas, often over 15 kilometers from a health facility.The top three items requested: oxygen concentrators, surgical kits, and clean mattresses.But we ’ve made progress.Last year,IntraHealth International helped build a new welcome center for fistula clients at the Sikasso Hospital in southern Mali. And over the last several years, we ’ve trained 25 obstetric fistula teams—each one including a surgeon, anesthetist, nurse, midwife, counselors, and family planning support—to work in regional hospitals and health centers.Next we ’ll be outfitting these centers with fistula-specific supplies and equipment, so they can provide better care for clients throughout northern Mali.When IntraHealth assessed facilities...
Source: IntraHealth International - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Authors: Source Type: news