Women in labour contact health professionals through phone calls
Samanta Harisu lives at Larabanga, a village in the West Gonja District in the Northern Region. She was one of the “faithful” patients of Ms Esther Azure, the midwife from Mole Health Centre, who saved her and her baby’s life.
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She took her antenatal visits seriously. She was regular at the Health Centre and was “religious” with her medication till her time was due.
Antenatal visits
When Samanta realised that she was in labour, she called her mother-in-law (as is usually the practice in that area) and she prepared to go to Mole Health Centre for delivery, but her labour had progressed so quickly that she could no longer sit on a motorbike, which was the only means of transport from Larabanga to Mole Health Centre at that time.
Samanta was bleeding and not knowing what to do, her husband quickly called a traditional birth attendant (TBA) to assist her. Most babies positioned head down in the womb. This is so they can come out of the birth canal head first.
Unfortunately, during delivery, the baby started coming out with his legs (breech presentation) and Samanta’s bleeding was increasing. The TBA and Samanta’s mother-in-law became confused and did not know what to do.
Then, Samanta remembered that during one of her antenatal visits, Esther wrote her mobile number in her antenatal card, and asked the latter to call her when she faced any difficulty with her pregnancy. Samanta quickly informed her family about Esther’s mobile number and where they could locate it.
Desperate call
Esther was fast asleep when a desperate call from Larabanga came through. A woman, who was in labour, was having complications. Esther quickly gathered her instruments on her motorbike, although it was late in the night, she gathered momentum to ride through the wild animals in the Mole Park to the village. Through skilled delivery, she was able to save the baby who was weak and could not breath well. Esther had to resuscitate the baby through her invented ambu bag (a quarter-sized voltic water bottle - cut from the top, with neat round foam).
Praise be to God! The baby boy was successfully resuscitated and Samanta’s bleeding also stopped. Samanta’s family was very happy and thankful to Esther for saving their daughter and grandson’s life.
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The mobile phone idea, known as the Zorko Initiative, was first introduced by Hajia Mary Issaka, once a midwife at the St Theresa Catholic Health Centre in Zorko, a sub-district of Bongo District in the Upper East Region.
Hajia Issaka gave her mobile number to her patients, especially pregnant women, so they could call her in case of emergency, particularly during labour. Upon receiving the call, Hajia would encourage the family to bring the woman. If the family was unable to bring the woman, she or a member of her team would travel to the respective community to attend to the patient.
A woman in labour
When a woman in labour made it to the facility, Hajia and her team provided the woman with hot porridge known as “zoomkoom” after delivery. The mother is then given hot water for a warm bath.
This initiative increased skilled delivery in the neighbouring communities around the health centre and could be emulated in other parts of Ghana, particularly in rural areas.
Communications companies can provide midwives and health workers in health centres, CHIP zones and clinics in rural areas with mobile phones and some amount of monthly credit as part of their social responsibilities, to facilitate the former’s work, especially those who handle maternal and child health. This will contribute to the achievement of the MDG 4 &5 that respectively relate to reducing child mortality and improving maternal health.
• The writer is an Assistant Lecturer at the Accra Polytechnic.