Giving Premature Babies in Samburu County a Better Chance to Survive and Thrive
Tuesday, 16 July, 2019
“………..when you come to the hospital and the doctors tell you that you have to give birth five weeks before the date they had indicated, you have to think twice.”
Elizabeth Lengur, 25, was attending her routine antenatal clinic for the second time, three months past her scheduled visit. The nurse informed her that they needed to deliver the baby immediately or both mother and child would lose their lives. Elizabeth later found out that the persistent headaches she had been suffering had been a sign of danger. She had developed pre – eclampsia.
“During my first pregnancy I delivered a healthy baby boy at 38 weeks just as the doctor had written in the maternity book, same as most of the mothers I know. But when you come to the hospital for your second delivery and the doctors tell you that you have to give birth five weeks before the date they had indicated, you have to think twice,” Elizabeth explains.
After counselling from the midwife, Elizabeth learnt that there are ways to stabilize and monitor a baby to maturity with the support of nurses at the hospital, something Elizabeth had never heard of. She accepted the doctor’s advice to help her induce labour urgently.
The Neonatal Unit
According to Lucy Makena, the nurse in charge of the maternity wing at Samburu County Referral Hospital, there has been a 40% increase in the uptake of maternal and new-born services in the last two years. However, incidences of babies born prematurely and underweight like Elizabeth’s case are also on the rise. The hospital had a challenge supporting premature and underweight babies due to the lack of a fully equipped and established neonatal unit. To avoid incidences of infection, mothers and their babies were referred to Nakuru County Referral Hospital which is six hours away by road.
“Stabilising premature babies while on transit, especially those born before 32 weeks, was difficult and some babies would develop complications. Fortunately, with the support of USAID through Afya Timiza, the neonatal unit was renovated. The Afya Timiza team also introduced the Kangaroo Mother Care Unit. The quality of neonatal services in this hospital has greatly improved as we are able to cater for all degrees of premature and low birth weight babies that are delivered here,” explains Makena.
A Life Saving Cuddle
Elizabeth is one of the beneficiaries of the newly renovated neonatal unit at Samburu County Referral Hospital. “With every passing day, my baby’s appetite continues to increase; her weight has increased from 1,650 grams to 2,100 grams in eight days. The nurses say it is because of the skin-to-skin contact with the baby using the kangaroo mother care approach,” Elizabeth explains.
“Through the combined efforts of partners like Afya Timiza and the Samburu County Government, community health workers are trained to sensitise mothers in the community on attending antenatal clinic and observing pregnancy danger signs, although not all mothers adhere to the routine check-ups as required. However, the number of mothers opting to deliver at the facility has increased and the County government is constructing a new maternity wing to accommodate them,” Lucy explains.
Since its renovation, the neonatal unit has successfully supported 171 babies with 72 being pre term. To improve the quality of maternal and new-born services, USAID through Afya Timiza has supported the renovation of two maternity units and one neonatal unit in Samburu County, and two maternal shelters in Turkana County.
Amref Health Africa teams up with African communities to create lasting health change.
