Saving Lives at Birth; Maternal Health in Uganda

In Uganda today family planning is at the top of the agenda. At the moment there are 37 million citizens but the country has one of the fastest growing populations anywhere in the world. On average each woman will give birth to six children. At Shanti Uganda we started our Family Planning program three years ago seeing one to two clients a month, a demand that has now grown to ten to twelve clients a month.

At age 42, after giving birth to 8 children, Rose, one of our Family Planning clients, made a discovery that startled her: birth control. “I delivered all theses children because I didn’t know there was another way,” said Rose, who started on a quarterly contraceptive injection last year. Looking at her two youngest children, 21-month-old Calvin and four year old Rachael, she added glumly: “I fear we are already too many in this family”.  

On a Thursday at Shanti, head midwife Ssanyu, sat with a hand-full of women and asked how many were practicing family planning. Fewer than half raised their hand and one woman said that a mother who used birth control would bear a deformed child. In reaction to the comment, Ssanyu, started educating the hand-full of women on the different methods of family planning offered at Shanti, the health benefits but also stressing the economic benefits of having fewer children.

According to Ssanyu, it is equally important to educate the men on family planning and Shanti always encourages clients to come with their partners. On a monthly basis Shanti offers family planning to ten to twelve couples and Ssanyu emphasizes that one should not underestimate the importance of educating the men: “Women are very worried about the reaction from their partner and it plays an important factor when they consider their decision to use contraceptives. If the man is against or has not been educated on family planning, the woman will likely not go for contraceptives”.

Shanti remains one of the best performing health centre II’s in the district, with a high number of family planning clients, both female and male. Since February this year, Shanti has been carrying out monthly outreaches, going to villages educating the communities on family planning. The unmet need for family planning is high, a need that Shanti works hard to provide.