The core of our work is to ensure that Maternal and Child health care is accessible to those at grassroots both on land and on water, under the rain, and in the sun.
We had our first routine antenatal event in the Jesuko community on August 4th, 2021. Accessing the community came with a hurdle we have never experienced since we started our intervention in this community. We have never had to use a boat as there was usually a wooden bridge to access the community through. The bridge collapsed as a result of the flood so we had to use the boat. It was particularly challenging but we forged ahead notwithstanding.
We attended to 4 pregnant women, gave them basic routine antenatal care, drugs, and ANTIMALARIAL medication. We referred two who are due for tetanus shot to our Sogunro event venue
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Getting the work done at Sogunro and Oko-Agbon communities on August 5th, 2021 was one hell of a ride for our community health workers especially because of the overnight rain that lasted up until we arrived at the communities. Flooding is the order of the day when it rains and we are usually prepared for it. The challenge at times though is that what we meet on the ground tends to vary from time to time.
Picking vaccines from the primary health center to our outreaches venue comes with its fair share of hurdles which we already started battling with from the early hours of the morning.
Sogunro Our team arrived Sogunro community and discovered that the flood was to the brim so we had to use another entry point on the boat. The readiness of the community dwellers is always very encouraging. We met them already waiting to be attended to. This is another reason why we push through every hurdle just to save and serve the marginalized. We attended to 24 pregnant women with basic routine antenatal care, antimalarial drugs and tetanus shots. We immunized 39 babies and children.
Oko-agbon We attended to 4 pregnant women with free basic routine antenatal care, drugs, and a tetanus shot. We also immunized 6 babies and gave injectable contraceptives to a mother.
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Our team assembled on time at Makoko community and vaccination pick up was quite easy on August 6th, 2021 as well.
We are still working on community mobilization in this but slowly and surely we are gaining ground.
We attended to 5 pregnant women with free basic routine antenatal care, tetanus shots, and antimalarial drugs. We immunized 10 babies and gave first aid treatment to an elderly woman.
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There was a heavy downpour when we arrived at Idi-araba and Mosafejo communities on August 21st,2021. The team got to our proposed venue minutes before the rain began. The turnout of expecting mothers was really low today due to the rain, although our community mobilizer had pre-informed the mothers of our coming before the rain. We attended three expectant mothers, Basic Antenatal Clinic, and glucose levels were also checked. We hope to have a large turnout in our next outreach.
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In an already staff deficient setting to maneuver nooks and crannies of communities, statements such as lack of time or nearness to the primary health care center or culture belief won’t be far fetched from mothers. According to the World Health Organisation(W.H.O), expectant mothers are to see a doctor at most 8 times before delivery, the first contact been at the 12week. It will be a bizarre situation when you find out a mother who is 24weeks gone without any contact with any qualified medical practitioner except the chemist or Auxiliary nurses. No access to proper testing, counseling, ultrasound, HIV test, tetanus immunization, and fetal measurement. The uncertainties that come with the unknown of what is happening to the baby and with the mother are heightened. We strive monthly to expand our hands of hope to such mothers, ensuring they have access to Antenatal care at the comfort of their homes or areas, and also safeguarding the future of the children.
Despite the challenges and hurdles notwithstanding we are grateful for your support in making this possible for the women and babies in these communities
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