Rita is growing up. The 7-month-old girl is now 67 centimeters tall and weighs 6.5 kilograms. She has already learnt a lot: she can roll over and tries to sit down, still facing developmental delays. Her favorite activity is taking an evening bath. She looks like a very joyful girl.
MAMA+ Project staff members continue to provide this family with assistance. The main focus of their work is psychological support for the mother and care for her daughter’s health.
Lera is learning to be a mother. Now she knows what it is like to have sleepless nights when the baby is crying sick or teething, and how pleasant it is to see a smile on her daughter’s face. MAMA+ staff members assist Lera and Rita to understand each other. Lera attends specialized training sessions for mothers, facilitated by the project psychologist. She also visits medical specialists at the AIDS Center.
With Rita’s birth, Lera sees no way back to her past. She is currently making every effort to protect her daughter from her negative experience.
Unfortunately, born prematurely, Rita is facing a lot of health problems. Due to her weakened immune system, the girl is often sick. Her mother’s infectious diseases and complicated delivery resulted in Rita’s delays in psychophysiological development. It has taken a lot of efforts from Lera and the project staff to maintain the girl’s health status: Rita is constantly in need of medical consultations, examinations, tests, and medicaments. A course of physical therapy would also be very helpful to her.
We want to support this family and will appreciate your participation!
Recently, a new family has been taken on MAMA+ Project supervision.
Project staff members first met with Zhanna several months ago, when she was six months pregnant. She was brought to the MAMA+ Center by her friend, a MAMA+ client.
Zhanna was alone and needed help. She was worried about herself and the future of her child.
Though resembling many other stories of MAMA+ clients, Zhanna’s story is unique.Over several years, she was injecting drugs. She contracted HIV while a drug-user. She was keeping her diagnosis secret. Zhanna lives in a communal apartment together with her mother whom she is in conflict with.
By the moment of MAMA+ enrollment, she had spoiled relations with her child’s father. As she was pregnant, she often used to take sick leave, which finally created serious financial problems.
+ staff provided Zhanna with consultations and psychological support. They assisted her in taking a maternity leave. They helped her prepare for the childbirth, provided her with babies’ clothes, a crib and a carriage.
“I was struck by the news that I was pregnant. I had no idea what I could do and if I could raise my child on my own. I’m grateful to my friend for telling me about the MAMA+ project. This is the only place where I can speak about my illness freely and be sure that I will always get help”, says Zhanna.
Her son Artyom was born on January 12, 2013. As he was born premature and needed medical assistance and additional care, Artyom was transferred to a children’s hospital in Leningrad region. In the maternity hospital, Zhanna was tested positive for TB. She was prescribed a course of treatment. Her apartment was subject to sanitation.
Presently, Artyom is placed in a babies’ home, as Zhanna had to leave him for a while until she had her health problems resolved. Artyom is visited by the project staff: they bring him diapers, milk formula and clothes. A TB patient, Zhanna cannot visit her son. She is taking treatment and renovating her room, looking forward to Artyom’s return. She has already taken first steps to have him back home: she has obtained Artyom’s birth certificate and registered him at their room. MAMA+ staff will assist Zhanna in registering for children’s allowances after the boy’s return. Meanwhile, the woman continues to receive the project assistance and attend peer support group sessions and seminars for clients at the MAMA+ Center.
This small family is currently facing hard times: Zhanna and her little son are in need of your support!
Dear Friends,
We are pleased to share the latest Foster Family Project news with you.
In February, 11 parents (9 families) completed a regular School for Foster Parents training course. Four children from government institutions were placed in foster families trained by the project staff. Over the last 3 months, 28 families with 38 foster children benefited from the project support.
Additionally, two meetings of the Club for Foster Families took place in February-March 2013, as outlined below:
The meeting held on February 15 was devoted to the Fatherland Defender’s Day. The parents and their children were given an opportunity to demonstrate inventiveness, smartness and soldier skills. The boys showed their preparedness to defend and take care of others. At the end of the meeting, the participants were singing one of popular military songs.
The meeting on March 15 was devoted to the International Women’s Day. The parents and their children were taking active part in joyful games and contests, inventing their own dress designs and showing them on a podium, making a greeting card, singing and dancing. The interactive part of the holiday was followed by a traditional tea-drinking party with delicious pies served. The meeting culminated in giving flowers to the girls and their mothers.
Doctors to Children looks forward to sharing more news from the Foster Family Project.
Best wishes,
Doctors to Children,
The Foster Family Project team
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