Ultrasounds are an essential tool in preventing women and infants from dying of largely preventable causes related to pregnancy complications.

Why we care: Some of the highest rates of maternal and neonatal deaths in Mexico come from the women of Guachochi, Chihuahua. Antenatal care can greatly reduce the number of women and infants dying from preventable causes.

How we’re solving this: Improving access for pregnant women to receive the care they need by providing communities with improved health facilities equipped with ultrasound machines.

Early detection of pregnancy related risks is one of the most efficient ways to prevent serious complications and death during a woman’s pregnancy and childbirth. Regular ultrasounds are the most effective means for uncovering warning signs during the perinatal period, which, if discovered early enough, allow rural health care providers to decide the most appropriate treatment or if necessary, refer women out to larger hospitals before transporting the woman becomes a danger in itself.

One Heart World-Wide is working in some of Mexico’s poorest and most remote areas. In Guachochi, health posts are often lacking basic medical equipment to allow for high quality maternal care. As part of our Network of Safety in Chihuahua, we are making sure to grant women regular access to care, and well equipped clinics throughout these rural regions. Our goal is for each woman to receive prenatal visits and to detect high-risk pregnancies early, so those at risk can be referred to larger hospitals that are better prepared to handle difficult deliveries.

For these reasons, regular use of ultrasounds is encouraged to monitor the mother and fetus’s health so that health care providers can offer the best possible care, tailored to each specific case.

We need your help to make sure that the clinics we partner with are prepared to offer these services by having a portable ultrasound readily available. Your donation will help women get the care they need to ensure a safe delivery!