New Antenatal Clinic About to Open

There is a time to let things happen, and a time to make things happen! Anon.

Water For Africa, based in Stoke-On-Trent, has been instrumental in building a new Antenatal Clinic which is situated in Tallinding Kunjang, in the district of Serrekunda in The Gambia. It will service a population of over 85,000. It is the only one in the local area and it is the first of its kind in offering the highest standards of care to pregnant and nursing women.

Trustee Sheryl Greentree and herself a mother of two children said “With our work with the local communities in the provision of water, we were witnessing unimaginable tragedies, such as women dying from anaemia in pregnancy, which could be prevented from taking iron tablets, countless women who have lost babies and suffered irreversible injuries during childbirth”. Water For Africa’s Executive Director, Momodou Mboge, is also a trained nurse and midwife, so it is an issue very close to the whole organisation's heart and one which they could not continue to ignore.

Some startling facts are: -  

• According to UNICEF, 30,000 children die each day due to poverty. That is about 210,000 children each week or just under 11 million children under five years of age each year.
• Over 4 million babies die in the first month of life and over half a million women die due to complications with pregnancy and childbirth
• The 2 biggest threats to child survival in developing countries are safe delivery and malnutrition and infant care in the first few weeks of life.

It is envisaged that all pregnant women will be offered the following:

• Routine electronic blood pressure monitoring, foetal heart monitoring, blood testing for anaemia
• Full clinical health records will be stored on an electronic medical record database, which will alert the midwives to missed appointments for a pro-active follow-up service.
• Full education and emotional support for all women and their families about the different stages of pregnancy and expectations prior to, during and post delivery.
• Advice and support to mothers and their new-born babies to support them through the first crucial weeks of their new baby's life
• Preventative vitamin and mineral supplements such as folic acid, iron and vitamin B12 to help support the developing foetus.
• An impregnated mosquito net to protect the mother and the baby from the real risk of contracting malaria.

We are appealing to all local health centres, primary health trusts, hospitals and mothers themselves to help us with donations of equipment, such as ultra-sound scanners, ECG Machines, digital thermometers, opthalmoscopes, etc and funding raising for medicines and consumables for the clinic.

We are especially appealing to women and mothers themselves, who wish to help other women and mothers in Africa, if you wish to support us with fund-raising or have any fund-raising ideas, we would love to hear from you. With your help we can continue to support pregnant women across the whole of The Gambia by offering them the best chance of a successful pregnancy and a happy, healthy baby, with the best chance of life.

Please click here to contact us if you are able to help