Longer training session in Kenya, a landmark in the community care of newborn children in Africa

By: Victor Chinyama
Nairobi, Kenya, June 26, 2007 - do not know Evelyn Katungye, which amounts to twenty-year-old, the reason that led to the deaths of her two children. In April 2005, gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl, assisted by skilled birth at her home in Majengo, a large slum near downtown Nairobi. However, the joy was not completed when the first child died a few hours after her birth, and soon other child died. Evelyn and Sculpture, which collapsed completely blame the midwives, but they are not confident of doing so, the lack of facts to have to prove it.
And repeated the ordeal inflicted on Evelyn in all parts of Africa, every day the equivalent of 3000 times. Die more than a million children a year are in the first five months of age, for reasons attributable to diseases such as pneumonia, birth asphyxia, and premature births, low birth weight. And not necessarily that such diseases are fatal, but most mothers in Africa give birth at home without medical assistance expert. This leads to the death of newborns in catastrophic levels.
Lessons learned
It was possible to save the children and children Evelyn millions of other women in Africa using simple, proven and cost-effective. In November 2006, UNICEF sponsored by a group of key decision makers in Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique and Madagascar, to visit the region Gadashierule Maharstra in the state, in western India, where they studied the pioneering work by Dr. Abhay Bang on the care of children newborns.
Through the NGO he founded, "Society for Education, Action and Research in Community Health", Dr Pang able to successfully reduce the number of neonatal mortality by two thirds during the first month of life in 40 rural communities in poor Gadashierule. Was commended in their own way as a strategy feasible and cost-effective for poor communities in Africa.
The program provides basic health care for children who are born in the house. Are trained health workers in the village on the diagnosis of some complications such as pneumonia and premature infants, birth asphyxia, and is equipped with a basic medical valued at $ 60, consisting of a sleeping bag for the child, and a bag and mask recovery, and antibiotics.
Landmark
In late June, UNICEF brought together 30 master trainers from 10 African countries to conduct training course on community-based newborn care period of eight days. This is the course a milestone in UNICEF's efforts to help Governments to provide newborn care by using health workers and workers in the field of health promotion and other key personnel.
It was among the participants a number of senior paediatricians, and trained health workers, officials from the health programs for maternal, newborn and children.
The aim of this training course to assist in promoting the integration of newborn care with other health programs that address the health of maternal and infant at the community level. The quote curriculum developed by UNICEF of the curriculum that it applies "Society for Education, Action and Research in Community Health", in India. The communication materials have been adapted from Bolivia.
Action is required
"This training is exactly what we need to support the introduction of community care for newborn children," said Dr. Mary Ngoma, a pediatrician at the hospital advisory university education in Zambia. Available with the Ministry of Health of Zambia plans to introduce community-based care for newborn children in two districts. And will be training of health workers in the community to identify the diseases that affect newborns in the house and addressed.
Said Mark Tomlinson, a researcher at the health systems in the Medical Research Council in Cape Town, South Africa, "The platform will be used to develop a manual on community-based care for newborn children. He added: "We can now adapt the training curricula for UNICEF, rather than reinvent the wheel again."
He said UNICEF Regional Director, Per Ingebak, that there was no excuse for us to fail in the care of newborn children, now that the knowledge and evidence and tools readily available. "All we need now is to begin to improve the degree of our interventions, as they do now Malawi and Ethiopia," he said, "It is our duty to give birth a chance to live."