A maternity waiting home in the Bolivian lowlands

In the poor, remote villages of the Amazon, women die from treatable childbirth complications because they can’t make it to a health clinic in time.

Why we care: Bolivia has the highest maternal mortality in South America, and indigenous communities have the highest maternal mortality in the country.

How we're solving this: Equipping a maternity waiting home, so indigenous women have a safe place to stay near the hospital as their due date approaches.

Along the rivers of the Bolivian lowlands, many pregnant women have little or no access to basic reproductive health services. In Bolivia, the country with the highest maternal mortality rate in South America, even the most common childbirth complications can turn fatal. In these remote communities, nearly two-thirds of all maternal deaths occur at home, or as the woman makes the long and difficult journey to a health facility. When the rivers flood in the wet season, traveling quickly to the clinics becomes almost impossible and women die from complications as they try to get to emergency care.

To address this barrier, Family Care International (FCI) is working with local health authorities and women’s groups to equip a maternity waiting home, near the regional hospital in the town of Puerto Rico, in the Pando Region of Bolivia. Pregnant women and their families will be able to stay at the home in the days and weeks before going into labor to ensure that they will be near the hospital before giving birth. Once it is equipped, the home will be available to 1,000 women of reproductive age and their families in the area. The maternity waiting home will be especially crucial for women giving birth in the wet season, when traveling to the hospital is the most difficult. 

When you donate to this project, the money will go directly to buying the equipment for the maternity waiting home, including beds, fully equipped kitchens and other culturally appropriate supplies needed to make the women and families feel comfortable. For many pregnant Bolivian women, getting to a healthcare facility often means the difference between life and death. Ensuring access to the hospital is a huge step in the fight to reduce maternal mortality in the region.