A happy ending…
Maternal and infant mortality: it’s the reason why we do what we do. Most times, deaths can easily be prevented with the proper care. Occasionally, no matter how skilled the attendant, the death of the mother or child is inevitable. Every time this happens, someone is left mother-less, wife-less, child-less or sibling-less; and those people are the ones who will forever be affected by the loss.
Last night we indirectly experienced the long term scarring that can be caused by infant and maternal mortality. On the last prenatal visit with this client, I asked her if she had any other questions or comments and all she said was “I just want to see my baby”. Yesterday morning when she came into labor, she was accompanied by several of her adult, female cousins, none of whom have had children. One of the cousins told us that the last time she attended a birth was when her mother was delivering her baby brother, and both passed away shortly after.
Fear surrounded this birth. All the cousins were very supportive and didn’t let the laboring mother see their fear, but we saw it when they left the room and when they asked us questions. They were remembering the outcome of their late mother/aunt and sibling/cousin. And we saw that fear in our client and later she admitted that she was afraid. She was subconsciously holding back while trying to push. It wasn’t easy, but both mom and baby came out of the birth healthy and happy. A whole crowd of cousins are now in competition to be the best auntie.
OTP’s 2012 Wishlist
Below is a link to OTP’s wishlist for 2012. It’s an easy, tangible way to help OTP in the coming year. Of course, we still appreciate your monthly donations!
http://www.amazon.com/
Since we sent out our last newsletter the security issues in Jacmel have improved. There have been no reported robberies for three weeks now. This is a huge relief for Sarah and OTP staff and we hope the calm continues.
Thank-you again for your support. We look forward to this new year and what it will bring.
Sarah Wallace
Sarah Wallace founded Olive Tree Projects in 2008 to serve and save the children of Haiti. This blog is a place for Sarah to post the latest news of Olive Tree Projects work.
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