My return to Malawi is approaching quickly! I’ll set off on my 24-hour journey to the heart of Africa in less than two weeks.
With timeliness on my side, I’m starting to make more progress with the team. I’ve had more time over the summer to dive deep into the Ministry of Health’s maternal death surveillance guidelines, and had juuust a few thoughts and questions in response.
When I shared some of these considerations with the team at CLI, they scheduled a meeting and hosted representatives from the District Health Office for the first time since the maternity ward opened. They asked for what the published guidelines promised–communications from the top down, and coordination across facilities.
Another big win came out of this meeting: vouchers for visitors who can’t afford a hospital visit but are transferred from CLI to St Gabriel’s, the nearest full hospital which can perform more complex operations that we aren’t equipped to handle at the clinic.
![St Gabriel's Missionary Hospital in Namitete](https://u.osu.edu/ramos.65/files/2016/07/St-Gabriel-1cb8mk2-300x177.jpg)
The sense from CLI was that patients weren’t coming to deliver at the clinic, for fear of being transferred to a hospital which they couldn’t afford. So this solution removes a significant barrier to entry and I’m excited to see how the word spreads and, hopefully, increases deliveries at the facility.
My second visit to the site will focus on two efforts:
- Evaluate the project we implemented about 18 months ago, with a final product being a publication that might provide insights for other clinics or organizations hoping to collect data on maternal and neonatal deaths in their catchment areas.
- Develop a needs assessment, based on the data collected during the surveillance, and input from stakeholders across the catchment area. This will be a proposal of sorts, for initiatives that might address the barriers we are finding to safe pregnancies, deliveries and postpartum care.
I’ll only be in Malawi for half the time I spent during my first visit, so the pressure is on to complete a lot of pre-work in order to make the most of my face-to-face time in August. I’ve reflected on ways I can improve my communications skills and be a more effective collaborator on site to make it all work. Send me prayers, luck, good vibes, whatever you have to send my way!
Zikomo,
Lucy
Good luck, Lucy! You’re really are doing good works. And your leaving a positive legacy in Malawi. Safe and productive travels.