Last July, with your support, we launched our Healthy Pregnancy Program. The program provides education to women on how to have the healthiest pregnancy possible, and also offers them free prenatal vitamins and monthly check-ups. Since we launched the program, we have served 100 women at various stages of pregnancy. In addition to distributing prenatal vitamins and conducting prenatal exams, our nurses have been teaching mother’s classes – weekly education sessions for the moms in the communities. We have hosted three such classes in two of our communities – Magsasaka and Aplaya. Through these classes, the moms have engaged in discussions on a variety of crucial topics including:

• The changes a woman’s body undergoes during pregnancy
• The importance of getting consistent prenatal and postnatal care
• Planning/budgeting for giving birth in a clinic
• Combating nausea and other pregnancy-related issues

In the last year, our Healthy Pregnancy Program has equipped 160 moms with knowledge that will help them have the safest and healthiest pregnancy possible. Through the mother’s classes, our nurses have also worked with the girls and women to shift harmful attitudes, such as the notion that the husband always knows what is best for the family or the reluctance of parents to talk to their kids about sex. In these ways, our Healthy Pregnancy Program has provided women and girls with the tools they need to feel empowered and prepared for motherhood.

Get personal

Recently, as the mother’s class was wrapping up in Aplaya, Daisy, one of our nurses, encouraged all the moms to follow along as she led them through an original song and dance that reviewed the basics of performing a self-breast exam. As the moms danced and sang, mirroring Daisy’s movements, their enthusiasm was infectious. Daisy made learning a crucial topic engaging and non-threatening, and the moms loved it!

Risks and challenges

When we provide clinical services in the communities, such as conducting prenatal check-ups, we partner with the local barangay (village) health centers. Often, we are providing services that, due to lack of resources, the barangay health centers are unable to effectively provide. Also, in some cases, local barangay health workers misunderstand our services, viewing us as competitors rather than collaborators. When such misunderstandings occur, it creates tension between our clinical staff and the local barangay health workers. We are continuously working to emphasize that our presence in the communities is meant as a partnership, and that our clinical staff is there to help fill the gaps in service delivery.

What we’ve learnt

Since implementing the Healthy Pregnancy Program, we have worked with some women who are currently on contraceptives, but want to have another child. When these women see a doctor, s/he would recommend that they start taking prenatal vitamins immediately. Thus, whenever we encounter a woman who is actively trying to get pregnant, we start her on prenatal vitamins at that point in time, rather than waiting until she is pregnant. This helps to ensure that the mom-to-be is getting the appropriate nutrients that are crucial for the baby in its first few weeks of formation. While there are still lots of unplanned pregnancies, when pregnancies are planned we have realized the importance of beginning prenatal care as early as possible.

Next steps

We’ve partnered with a funder for the continuation of the Healthy Pregnancy Program; however, we still need to raise money for high-risk pregnant women to be able to give birth in a clinic. We’re renewing our Clinics When it Counts project, which can be viewed HERE. Thank you for your continued support as we strive to ensure that the moms in our communities remain healthy during their pregnancies!

Budget

Our budget was $5,540. We spent only a little bit more than we'd envisioned. We spent more for pregnancy kits, transportation and medical supplies than planned, but spent less than projected on prenatal vitamins.