Help Save lives in Mali through clean birth kits

Dear Hope Supporters,

Because of your continued support, Hope Health & Care is bringing maternal and community health services closer to women and families in underserved communities in Mali.

Our work goes beyond providing a birth kit. We are working to create a safer journey for mothers, from pregnancy and prenatal care through childbirth and the first months of a child's life.

Through our community health program, we worked across 13 rural communities in the Ménankoto Sud and Dandoko areas of Mali. The program reached 2,115 people through health education, screening, home visits and follow-up services.

Maternal and child health was integrated throughout the program:

• Supporting mothers with knowledge

We conducted community education on infant and young-child feeding, including early breastfeeding, exclusive breastfeeding during the first six months, and appropriate complementary feeding. 369 people participated in these sessions, including 351 women—97% of all participants.

• Protecting pregnant women and children from malaria

Malaria remains a major health threat for young children and pregnant women. Our teams conducted 13 community malaria-prevention sessions reaching 471 people, including 400 women (85%). Communities received information on prevention, recognizing danger signs and seeking care early.

• Protecting mothers and babies through nutrition

We screened 629 children for malnutrition and identified 34 cases requiring follow-up, including six severe cases that were referred to health facilities. Twenty-three children with moderate acute malnutrition received regular follow-up; 15 recovered and eight showed improvement.

We also trained 126 mothers to monitor their children's nutritional status at home and provided them with screening tapes so they could continue monitoring their children after our teams left.

• Building a Safer Path to Motherhood

One of the most important lessons from our work is that maternal health cannot be addressed only on the day of delivery. Women need information during pregnancy. Families need to recognize danger signs. Mothers need access to nutritious food and malaria prevention. Health problems need to be identified early. And when it is time to give birth, women need access to basic, safe delivery resources.

That is why Hope is continuing to strengthen this entire continuum of care.

As part of the program, 150 clean birth kits are being provided to pregnant women who regularly attend prenatal consultations. The kits are designed to help prevent infections during childbirth and provide mothers with essential supplies for a safer delivery.

Your contribution helps us move closer to that goal.

Thank you for believing in Hope, and for standing with mothers and babies in Mali.

With gratitude,