Every 19 seconds a mother looses her child to a water related death!

 

 

I chose water.  Here in this country we have no idea how precious this commodity is.  Clean water is a basic human right, yet so many children in other countries don’t have access to clean water.  According to JAIDS Journal (2005) the water in Uganda has been linked to HHV-8 infection.  These children that were infected were associated with lower socioeconomic status and using surface water. Households with limited access to water may have less hygienic practices that increase risk for HHV-8 infection.  Given the effort it takes to obtain water for their house, this is not surprising.  Dirty water carries disease, worms and leads to diarrhea and other health problems.  This is something we take for granted.  With water so abundant here and so important to the health of our children I plan to make sure that the children in my care get pleanty of it daily.  I hope you take a minute to watch the video.  This would also be a great project to involve classrooms in.  It is simple to understand and there are many ideas for getting involved at Charity: Water                        

Water, Socioeconomic Factors, and Human Herpesvirus 8 Infection in Ugandan Children and Their

Mothers, JAIDS Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes, 1 April 2005 - Volume 38 - Issue 4 - pp 474-479

Birthing experiences

 Birthing Experience

I have given birth twice.  Both in a hospital.  I felt comforted to know that if anything went wrong the baby, the hospital personnel could take care of it.  The first one was a very long labor of over 24 hours.  I chose not to use any type of drugs, I changed my mind while in labor but they didn’t listen-it was too late.  Even though it was very stressful I had a lot of support and recovered well and the baby (now 22) flourished with no complications.  The second one I chose to use an epidural.  It was less stressful, but for some strange reason it took me longer to recover.  I believe I had post pardom depression.  I went to the doctor because I had no energy wanted to sleep, felt depressed, and my hair was falling out.  He told me to drink more water…I had negative feelings toward the new baby and felt so guilty for them.  She also was colicky and sick quite a bit.  I can’t imagine what it would be like had I not had support from my husband and family.

After reading about giving birth in Uganda I feel spoiled.  According to (allafrica.com, 2011) mortality rate is 435 deaths per 100,000 live births, while the infant mortality rate is estimated at 76 deaths per 1,000 live births. In Uganda, 16 women die every day in childbirth.  This is due to few health practitioners or midwives and few facilities.  The health facilities that they do have lack basic supplies for emergency procedures needed to save the lives of newborns.  I would be so scared if I had to deliver a baby knowing I could not trust the baby would be O.K.  Here in the United States what we consider a right is considered a privilege in Uganda.  My heart goes out to this country and it’s people.

 References

n.a., AllAfrica Global Media.(2011). Uganda: Maternal Deaths - Midwives Missing in Rural Areas

Retrieved from http://allafrica.com/stories/201110060862.html?viewall=1 January 12,       2013