HAITI BLOG

Dr. Alezandre Dauphin.

I have been working in Haiti for the last 20 years providing health care to Haitians and more intensely since the earthquake; and I have seen the destruction of the core of Haiti, Port-au-Prince and its surroundings first-hand. The most powerful earthquake in 200 years hit Haiti on January 12, killing 200,000 people and affecting over 3.5 million. Lifelines to even the most basic health services were disrupted, especially for the extreme poor among whom access to especially maternal and child health care was already a problem.

Before the earthquake, mothers in Haiti faced catastrophic risks, with one in 200 mothers dying in childbirth, the highest rate in the Western Hemisphere. Even more disheartening is the situation for children with one in nine children dying before their fifth birthday. These children are fighting for their survival every day, most often against conditions easily prevented and/or treated, such as respiratory infections, diarrhea and malnutrition. The impact of the earthquake has left the people in Haiti with health care issues that are even more devastating. It encompasses now all genders and social strata with extended consequences for years to come.

Most of the indicators underlying mortality rates have either stagnated or worsened in Haiti over the last five years:

• Breastfeeding has fallen to unacceptably low levels
• Childhood immunization rates range from 10 – 40 per cent nationwide
• Malnutrition among children and pregnant women remains high
• Only 26 per cent of women have a skilled attendant at birth
• Haiti has one of the oldest HIV/AIDS epidemics in the western hemisphere

This week, leaders of G8 countries meet in Canada and maternal and child health tops their agenda. Will the G8 set out clear plans to tackle these problems in Haiti and other developing countries facing similar crises?

The priorities are clear: Enhancement of basic health care delivery, family planning, prenatal and postpartum care, assisted deliveries, treatment of diarrheal diseases in children, nutrition counseling and education (including promotion of breastfeeding) and vitamin A supplements. To succeed, all of these are to be done in a way that will bring changes that are truly irreversible and long lasting.

Half a million women die around the world in childbirth every year

Dr. Jean Chamberlain

“Half a million women die around the world in childbirth every year,” I tell the crowd at Wycliffe College in Toronto. For many, this fact may seem far-fetched in a nation where only an average of ten deaths occurs annually from childbirth related complications compared to Uganda with the same population where 6,000 mothers die. But for many of the world’s poorest nations, the high incidence of maternal death from preventable complications is a painful reality. Stephen Harper, on behalf of Canada, has remarked that “This is simply not acceptable,” and has made a commitment to address maternal and child health as a top priority initiative for this year’s upcoming G8 Summit in Huntsville, Ontario. Having witnessed firsthand the deaths of women during childbirth over and over in developing nations through my work as an obstetrician-gynecologist, my passion lies in questioning what we can do to bring down this intolerable number, and taking effective action.

The future well-being of developing nations depends on how the next generation of global leaders partners with those nations to tackle the scourge of maternal deaths. I believe the key action required is work with indigenous leaders, developing partnerships on-the-ground to bring sustainable change. This is the belief on which Save the Mothers International was founded in 2005 –a Canadian-Ugandan partnership offering a Masters in Public Health Leadership taught at Uganda Christian University, ultimately training community leaders to advocate for grassroots change in their culture to reduce maternal deaths. More than 120 Ugandan leaders, including parliamentarians, journalists, and educators, have entered or graduated from the program since 2005.

As founder and executive director, it is truly inspiring to witness the direct impact that Save the Mothers is having in the country. Earlier this year, four members of Ugandan Parliament, Save the Mothers graduates, lobbied to block a Ugandan national budget until more funds were allocated for maternal health. It is also very welcoming to hear of news that maternal deaths are down in some regions. However, we need to continue working diligently to ensure every pregnant mother gets the care she needs, regardless of her geographic or economic state.

And so my mission continues. There are plans to expand Save the Mothers International to other developing nations, starting across East Africa and then to countries in the Indian subcontinent and the Middle East. What a lucky coincidence it is that maternal health is being acknowledged at the top of this year’s G8 Summit agenda. As a keynote speaker at the G8 Youth Summit in Muskoka on June 24th, I am excited to meet these G8 Youth - young men and women from strategic countries with a great chance in their lifetime to save mothers and children, to reduce deaths that are preventable. I hope to make my mission theirs.

For more information on Save the Mothers International, please visit our website at www.savethemothers.org