By Robert Rutherford | Resource Development Officer
Reproductive health continues to be urgently needed in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and is an area where International Medical Corps continues to respond. Along with ongoing Basic Emergency Obstetric Care training in Eastern DRC clean delivery kits have also been procured and mobilized for distribution. In November of 2014, 16 midwifes in Itebero health zone received this training and 5,090 clean delivery kits were procured and sent to the Walikale, Itebero and Kibua health zones to be distributed. Through the fall of 2014 International Medical Corps also supported transportation and obstetric care for 29 pregnant women with obstetric complications. Another vital focus area for International Medical Corps in this region is the training of skilled laboratory assistants.
International Medical Corps organized training for eight laboratory technicians from the Walikale, Itebero and Kibua health zones. This training was focused on utilization of rapid tests for malaria, diabetes, syphilis and pregnancies. The practical part of the training was conducted at the Walikale General Hospital where participants learned how to receive and register patients, analyze samples, monitor and give tests results while ensuring all records are kept safely.
The following is the first hand account of Innocent, a trained laboratory assistant of Ndofia Health center.
“I have learned to conduct urine and blood tests for syphilis, diabetes and malaria during the International Medical Corps training. Prior to this training, I used to treat patients based on the signs and symptoms of the disease with no accuracy. I now realize that I could have been treating the wrong diseases since there was no confirmation of what I was treating. Thanks to International Medical Corps, I am now confident regarding the treatment that I give. I can conduct rapid tests and confirm the disease and give appropriate treatment.’’
With the support of Global Giving and other donors International Medical Corps is able to support reproductive health in a holistic fashion by facilitating the broader health needs of mothers before, during and after pregnancy.
Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can receive an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.
