By Emma Kennedy | Partnerships and Fundraising Manager
We are thrilled that the new Mothers' Waiting Shelter (MWS) at Kanyanga Rural Health Post (RHP) is now built.
The catchment area for Kanyanga RHP stretches for over 45km, serving a population of over 24,500 people.
Prior to the construction of the new MWS, many women would make a long walk to the facility to be greeted with a make-shift mud, wooden pole, and thatch open shelter to spend their final month of pregnancy close to a health care professional and proper facilities.
The old shelter was open to the elements and often had unwanted visitors such as snakes, chickens and goats and pregnant women would lie on the dust floor on old sacks to sleep at night.
There was also a significant amount of pregnant women who would not make the journey to the facility owing to the far distance and the lack of enthusiasm for staying in the old shelter due to the poor conditions. This led to women giving birth at home in unsanitary environments or medical help, leading to infection, neo-natal or maternal illness or mortality.
The new MWS, is made of bricks and has an iron sheet roof. The capacity of the new shelter is for 20 women, and there are proper single beds with foam mattresses and hygienic protectors on them for easy cleaning. Each woman has an area for them to sleep and keep their belongings and the shelter has been build behind the RHP, but close to the Maternity Annex (MA) to ensure there is maximum privacy as well as close access to the MA when needed. The shelter will soon be connected to solar power so there will be lights at night. The building is easy to clean owing to the smooth concrete floors and freshly painted walls.
The MWS is now in use as it is rainy season in Zambia at the moment and the old shelter has holes in the thatch and is open to the elements. We have received some great reports from the expectant mothers as well as the healthcare staff that the new shelter is working well and much more comfortable. There will be an official district opening of the MWS in the next few months.
Our next steps are to provide reticulated water to the whole of Kanyanga RHP as well as the MA and MWS.
Thank you so much to everyone who donated!
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