Rotary Club of Halifax African project

ROTARY MAMA CARE KIT PROJECT IN AFRICA    

Refs:  A. Briefing by Dr. Douglas McMillan, Professor Pediatric Medicine, Dalhousie University

B.   E-Mail correspondence Dr. McMillan/David Mutale Project Leader in Uganda

1.       Dr. Doug McMillan reported to the Rotary Club of Halifax that during his visits to Uganda, he met David Mutale the leader of the Mama Care Project in Uganda and David Businge President of the Rotary Club of Makindye, Uganda, who are sponsoring club project.

2.       From my visits to Uganda, the Mama Care Kit looks complete with the exception of additional items for essential newborn care including “Vitamin K” and immunizations such as polio drops which are part of the immunization program shortly after birth.  Sadly these are only available in health centers where there are personnel trained in their use. Also, there is the potential to add to this list; e.g. a hat for the baby or the new Uganda child health passport. These supplies are extremely helpful at birth for both the baby and the mother (1/2 of whom may deliver at home rather than a health centre where these supplies might otherwise be available).

3.       Contents of a suitable mama kit for rural areas

Ser     Description of item                                                             QTY

A        a clean latex gloves                                                    71/2 2prs
B        sterile latex gloves                                                      71/2 2prs
C        sanitary pads                                                              4prs
D        cotton wool roll 4 making baby and mother swabs           100gm
E        white cotton band ligature                                           2PCS
F        Gauze hydrophilic * 90cm times1.5cm                         2pcs
G        Soap                                                                          1pc
H        Razor blade                                                                1
I         plastic sheeting 2m times 1m gauge 500                     1pc
J         attractive color red plastic sheet 1m times 1m gauge           350 1pc
L         tetracycline eye ointment /eye infections 4 babies           1pc
M       a piece of cloth for covering a baby                              1
N        tough impervious container bag for contents of the kit           1pc
O        a child growth card                                                      1

Note.   The zonta kit lack certain items that are suitable for rural areas and therefore more materials might be added in order to provide the best kit to be used by the traditional birth attendants who have limited or no access to these materials.

4.       Total Project Cost.   Total project cost is slightly over 97,000U$ and most of the vital items like essential drugs, bed nets, etc will be purchased from Abacus Pharmaceuticals and Joint Medical Store in Uganda.

3.       It is also great to see that this project has reached farther than the Mama Care Kit by including insecticide impregnated bed nets for pregnant women ( a strong recommendation for areas like Uganda where malaria is endemic and when occurring in pregnancy is even more serios for the mother and the baby who will hopefully sleep under the net with the mother after birth). They are also looking for kits for rapid testing (usually in health centers) for malaria and HIV (the latter treatable in the mother and baby after birth to reduce transmission). I am not sure the specifics of the child health programs but this often takes the form of child health days where families from a region bring their children for immunization, vitamin A, de-worming medication, weighing and advice on nutrition, etc.

4.       There is a definite need for this program as often supplies are not available through government sources and many people live in an agricultural subsistence economy with very little money.

5.       Dr. McMillan ask for assistance in making known to District Rotary Clubs their club presidents, the opportunity to participate in this worthwhile project would be most appreciated. There may also be opportunity for our District Governor to let other Canadian Districts know of the project. I have also suggested that the project be posted on the Rotary website which has projects from around the around the world. If interested contact David Mutale directly by email [david.businge54@gmail.com]

With the new year beginning in July the Rotary Club Of Halifax will work with our International Services Committee to see what our club contribution to this project would be as a Centennial International Service Project.

6.       Offer to Speak at Your Club.  Finally, if there are Rotary clubs in the region who might like to hear of needs in maternal child health in Uganda and other developing nations, I could put together a 20 minute talk.  Please contact me via e-mail at [Douglas.McMillan@iwk.nshealth.ca].