Babies born in the Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian communities we serve were not surviving until their first birthday. That's why we offer antenatal classes (84 new mums supported last year, many of whom have their first baby under the age of 18). We are raising this money to enable our midwife to continue offering a weekly advice session for mothers at our welcoming community centre, providing necessary supplements & medication, & transport for women to get to hospital for tests or to give birth.
Child mortality rates in the Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian communities of Kosovo are frighteningly high - where in the UK, out of 1000 babies born. 3 won't make it to their first birthday, in Kosovo as a whole when we started our work that figure was 12 babies dying before 12 months. But in the Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian communities, it was 41 babies dying before their first birthday.
A midwife comes to our community centre once a week to meet with pregnant women, and give general antenatal guidance including on nutrition, mental health, breastfeeding, managing birth pains effectively - & how to space their births to give their bodies time to recover before any subsequent pregnancy. We also offer medication & supplements, take blood pressure & provide transport to hospital. And we offer packs of baby clothes and blankets for a clean, warm start for babies home from hospital.
Last year, we supported 84 mothers in this way. Each of them was empowered to have a healthy pregnancy & give their babies the best start in life in ways that will positively impact later pregnancies too. Investment in the early months improves health outcomes later in life, and reduces families' overall healthcare expenditure. The relationships built with our team when mums attend the classes also build the trust that increase the chances of them later sending their children to our pre-school.
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