Category Archives: Sexual and Reproductive Health

World Health Day

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World Health Day

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Testimonial: Midwife Sarah Ibrahim in Ethiopia

For two years, Sarah Ibrahim has been working for Doctors of the World Germany in the Malayko Health Center (Somali Region, Ethiopia). Below she shares her experience working in the field.
 
What can happen to a woman if there is no midwife?
 
If there is no midwife, the situation can get dangerous. If there are complications, the mother can die while giving birth. There are sometimes dangerous signs like preeclampsia. Even if there is a TBA (Traditional Birth Attendant) and another skilled person, there could be a lot of different problems. 
 
To avoid these problems, you have provided training sessions. What do you teach other midwives?
 
We talk to pregnant mothers about how important it is that they come to the health facility when they feel that birth is about to begin. After birth, I consult and train the mother on how to take care of her baby and about hygiene for the baby and herself. I show this also to my colleagues and teach them for example how to detect preeclampsia and what to do in these cases. 
 
Do you have some words for our readers abroad?
 
I am greeting all the other women in the world. We are all family and we have to care about women and children regardless of the color of the skin or where they come from. It is a question of humanity and we have to take care of all of us.

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Universal Day of the Elimination of Violence Against Women

More and more minors are becoming victims of violence
 

“Early and forced marriages, unwanted pregnancies linked to sexual abuse, unsafe abortion practices of pregnancy (IVG): in the DRC, and particularly in South Kivu, gender-based violence is everywhere. And it is not decreasing, or not very noticeably. We know that from an OCHA report in 2020, GBV increased by 86% that year compared to 2019, this violence concerns more and more minors and young girls under 18 years of age are becoming pregnant. In the face of this violence, stigmatization and lack of care are still common for many victims,” explains Eric Wynants, deputy coordinator of DotW in DRC, who has coordinated the project to combat violence in Panzi.

In South Kivu, a region marked by ongoing conflict and an alarming humanitarian situation, rape has long been used as a weapon of war by the warring parties. Today, rape has spread in Congolese society, particularly through demobilized former child soldiers, militiamen, ex-rebels and various armed groups. The victims seem to be increasingly young, sometimes under the age of ten. This violence is in addition to other violence committed in a domestic or criminal context. In order to help the victims of this violence, DotW intervenes in the territory of Uvira and in the city of Bukavu. Our organization carries out community prevention activities, offers health care and provides psychosocial support, promotes the reintegration of victims into the workforce and refers them for legal advice. Given the tense security situation and the lack of humanitarian organizations present in certain areas, the intervention of DotW is essential.
 

The post Universal Day of the Elimination of Violence Against Women appeared first on Doctors of the World.

Universal Day of the Elimination of Violence Against Women

More and more minors are becoming victims of violence
 

“Early and forced marriages, unwanted pregnancies linked to sexual abuse, unsafe abortion practices of pregnancy (IVG): in the DRC, and particularly in South Kivu, gender-based violence is everywhere. And it is not decreasing, or not very noticeably. We know that from an OCHA report in 2020, GBV increased by 86% that year compared to 2019, this violence concerns more and more minors and young girls under 18 years of age are becoming pregnant. In the face of this violence, stigmatization and lack of care are still common for many victims,” explains Eric Wynants, deputy coordinator of DotW in DRC, who has coordinated the project to combat violence in Panzi.

In South Kivu, a region marked by ongoing conflict and an alarming humanitarian situation, rape has long been used as a weapon of war by the warring parties. Today, rape has spread in Congolese society, particularly through demobilized former child soldiers, militiamen, ex-rebels and various armed groups. The victims seem to be increasingly young, sometimes under the age of ten. This violence is in addition to other violence committed in a domestic or criminal context. In order to help the victims of this violence, DotW intervenes in the territory of Uvira and in the city of Bukavu. Our organization carries out community prevention activities, offers health care and provides psychosocial support, promotes the reintegration of victims into the workforce and refers them for legal advice. Given the tense security situation and the lack of humanitarian organizations present in certain areas, the intervention of DotW is essential.
 

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Testimonial of two survivors of sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo

“I tell my daughters: refuse the gift of an unknown man, who will inevitably expect something in return.”

Myriam (not her real name), widow, mother of three children, from Makobola, says: “It was July 2021. I was working in the fields. I was sexually assaulted by three men when I was alone. I went home drained, down and distressed. I didn’t speak anymore, neither to my children, nor to the village chief. I didn’t leave the house for days which alerted Bobylia, the focal point of the protective community. I confided in him.

Myriam then went to the Makobola health center, supported by DotW.
“When I arrived, I couldn’t sleep, I felt guilty, I was discouraged. Thanks to the psychological support I received from DotW psychosocial assistant, I was finally able to talk to my children.”

Today, having become a member of the ‘protective community’, a DotW project, Myriam is raising awareness about sexual violence among other Makobola residents.
“I advise victims of violence to go to medical facilities. I also teach my daughters to be careful, to avoid insecure places, and that they should not accept gifts from foreign men, who will inevitably expect something in return.”
 
Photography

© Caroline Thirion
 
 

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Testimonial of two survivors of sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo

“I tell my daughters: refuse the gift of an unknown man, who will inevitably expect something in return.”

Myriam (not her real name), widow, mother of three children, from Makobola, says: “It was July 2021. I was working in the fields. I was sexually assaulted by three men when I was alone. I went home drained, down and distressed. I didn’t speak anymore, neither to my children, nor to the village chief. I didn’t leave the house for days which alerted Bobylia, the focal point of the protective community. I confided in him.

Myriam then went to the Makobola health center, supported by DotW.
“When I arrived, I couldn’t sleep, I felt guilty, I was discouraged. Thanks to the psychological support I received from DotW psychosocial assistant, I was finally able to talk to my children.”

Today, having become a member of the ‘protective community’, a DotW project, Myriam is raising awareness about sexual violence among other Makobola residents.
“I advise victims of violence to go to medical facilities. I also teach my daughters to be careful, to avoid insecure places, and that they should not accept gifts from foreign men, who will inevitably expect something in return.”
 
Photography

© Caroline Thirion
 
 

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The Cost of Urbanization on Nepal

Support Waste Collectors & Recyclers 

Since 2018, DoTW has been working with waste collectors and recyclers in the Kathmandu Valley, and in 2020, has extended its activities to Nepalgunj.
The activities carried out in the two regions contribute to improving the health, well-being and livelihoods of collectors and recyclers in the waste sector. In concrete terms, DoTW aims to mitigate the risks associated with their professional activity and their exposure to a harmful environment and to improve their access to information and to appropriate, quality health services – including in the field of occupational health. Finally, this intervention should enable better recognition of their contribution to sustainable waste management in Kathmandu and Nepalgunj.
In 2021, DoTW supported the creation of a coordination platform in Kathmandu and Nepalgunj with public and private organizations, civil society or non-governmental organizations involved in the collection and recycling waste: the players in this sector were able to meet, discuss and draw attention to the problems encountered by workers in this sector, thus strengthening their power to act.

Throughout these years, DoTW strengthened the access of collectors and recyclers in the waste sector to quality health services adapted to their professional activity. Awareness sessions were organized for beneficiaries, in particular on the prevention of musculoskeletal disorders, the prevention of risks related to the dismantling of waste, or even on the prevention of animal bites and the tetanus vaccine.

DoTW has further strengthened the capacities of health care facility staff on health and safety at work: the staff of these facilities can thus offer medical consultations adapted to waste collectors and recyclers.  Finally, Médecins du Monde has supported the municipality of Kathmandu in upgrading an innovative health center, becoming an “urban center for the promotion of health”, accessible to workers in the waste sector but also to the inhabitants of the Valley. 

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The Cost of Urbanization on Nepal

Support Waste Collectors & Recyclers 

Since 2018, DoTW has been working with waste collectors and recyclers in the Kathmandu Valley, and in 2020, has extended its activities to Nepalgunj.
The activities carried out in the two regions contribute to improving the health, well-being and livelihoods of collectors and recyclers in the waste sector. In concrete terms, DoTW aims to mitigate the risks associated with their professional activity and their exposure to a harmful environment and to improve their access to information and to appropriate, quality health services – including in the field of occupational health. Finally, this intervention should enable better recognition of their contribution to sustainable waste management in Kathmandu and Nepalgunj.
In 2021, DoTW supported the creation of a coordination platform in Kathmandu and Nepalgunj with public and private organizations, civil society or non-governmental organizations involved in the collection and recycling waste: the players in this sector were able to meet, discuss and draw attention to the problems encountered by workers in this sector, thus strengthening their power to act.

Throughout these years, DoTW strengthened the access of collectors and recyclers in the waste sector to quality health services adapted to their professional activity. Awareness sessions were organized for beneficiaries, in particular on the prevention of musculoskeletal disorders, the prevention of risks related to the dismantling of waste, or even on the prevention of animal bites and the tetanus vaccine.

DoTW has further strengthened the capacities of health care facility staff on health and safety at work: the staff of these facilities can thus offer medical consultations adapted to waste collectors and recyclers.  Finally, Médecins du Monde has supported the municipality of Kathmandu in upgrading an innovative health center, becoming an “urban center for the promotion of health”, accessible to workers in the waste sector but also to the inhabitants of the Valley. 

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Our COVID-19 Response in Haiti, South Sudan and Ukraine

Infection, Prevention and Control   
 

The first objective in our COVID-19 programs was to ensure that the healthcare facilities were prepared for a COVID-19 outbreak in their region. The DotW team carried out training sessions to prepare healthcare staff and community health workers on COVID-19. These sessions focused on IPC strategies (quarantine, isolation, etc) as well as providing information on the COVID-19 virus including its etiology, transmission, symptoms, risk, diagnosis and treatment. Staff were also trained on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS), particularly within the context of COVID-19. 

Besides training healthcare staff on COVID-19, Doctors of the World donated Infection, Prevention and Control (IPC) supplies like PPE as well as medicine and medical equipment to the various healthcare facilities it supported in Haiti, Ukraine and South Sudan.  

Another key aspect of our COVID-19 response was raising community awareness by disseminating information about the virus to the public so that individuals were better equipped to recognize symptoms, prevent infection and seek out treatment. DotW prepared messages and presentations that were shared on the TV, radio, and across various social media platforms like Facebook. DotW had additionally partnered with local community leaders and organizations that could further amplify the message. 

In Ukraine, Doctors of the World organized phone consultations where individuals could call and receive the necessary information about COVID-19, as well as launched a video competition among children on how to prevent the spread of COVID-19. 

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