Safe childbirth for mothers in Trouin

Dr. Patrick Delince comes from Léogâne to Trouin several times a week and dispenses medical care from a temporary clinic. He said he is very pleased to see that "the community now benefits from better maternal health services."

In Haiti, severe bleeding can kill a healthy woman in less than two hours after giving birth to a child. If signs of post-partum infection are not recognized and treated as soon as possible, the mother's life will be at risk.

In Canada, these types of complications are easily treatable, but that is not always the case in Haiti, which has the highest maternal mortality rate in the Americas. Each year, for lack of infrastructure and qualified staff, thousands of Haitian women are exposed to the risk of complications associated with pregnancy and childbirth.

Until very recently, the geographic location of the communal section of Trouin, in southwest Haiti, increased the risks faced by pregnant women even further. In this poor, isolated area cases of maternal mortality were very common. It took more than an hour and a half to travel to Léogâne Hospital, and women with high-risk pregnancies could not get there in time. Even worse, during the rainy season, high water floods the road, making access even more difficult.

Paradoxically, the January 2010 earthquake changed things for the better. The disaster brought destruction in its wake, but there was a silver lining for Trouin. After the earthquake destroyed the village's small clinic, the Government of Haiti decided to build Haiti's first earthquake-resistant health centre there. After the earthquake, something had to be done, and CIDA funded the new initiative. The people of the region now have a new health centre. It offers a full range of primary health care. It is also equipped with a delivery room, an observation room, a pharmacy, and laboratory services. The services of a doctor and a nurse are available around the clock.

Dr. Patrick Delince comes from Léogâne to Trouin several times a week and dispenses medical care from a temporary clinic. He explains that health conditions in the region are similar to what can be observed elsewhere in Haiti: monitoring of pregnant women is haphazard; small children suffer from acute respiratory infections; and there is a high incidence of gastric and infectious digestive diseases, in addition to cases of cholera. Dr. Delince is very pleased to see that "the community now benefits from better maternal health services."

The new health centre has been designed to resist earthquakes and powerful hurricanes, frequent in this region. Built on land provided by the community, it is much more than just a concrete building. For mothers-to-be coming to the centre to give birth, it represents the comforting assurance of a safe delivery attended by qualified staff.

Built of wood and aerated concrete, this centre has been designed to resist earthquakes and powerful hurricanes, which are frequent in this region. Built on land provided by the community, Trouin's new health centre is much more than just a concrete building. It represents life and rebirth. For mothers-to-be coming to the centre to give birth, it represents the comforting assurance of a safe delivery attended by qualified staff.

Another major asset is that the new health centre also has a brand-new residence for medical staff members, who can now remain in the area on a permanent basis. In the past, health care employees did not stay in Trouin, or were forced to commute, because they could not find suitable accommodations. This residence will have a major impact on the quality, permanence, and continuity of care, as well as the retention of medical staff in the region.

Jean Guyle Primé, the mayor of Trouin, explains with great pride that the commune donated the land for the hospital. "People are very happy and proud that Trouin is a model for other areas of Haiti," he says.

"We hope to reduce the maternal and child mortality rate by giving people access to basic health care. Thanks to the centre, people will not have to make long and often difficult trips to Jacmel or Léogâne, trips that can often prove fatal for many pregnant women," says Weaver Destin, director of the Perspectives pour la santé et le développement [prospects for health and development], the Haitian field partner in implementing the CIDA project. "I want to thank Canadian cooperation for making health services available to these forgotten people living in isolated areas. This is a sustainable initiative."

Project profile for Bati Lavi Fund

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