ID :
60590
Thu, 05/14/2009 - 15:14
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/60590
The shortlink copeid
SOME 350 MOTHERS TO DELIVER BABIES IN SRI LANKA IDP CAMPS
P.VIJIAN
VAVUNIYA (Sri Lanka), May 14 (Bernama) -- The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) expects some 350 pregnant women to give birth in camps in Northern Sri Lanka next month where ferocious battle between government troops and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) is still raging on.
The agency said that thousands of pregnant women had fled the fighting zone
and it is stepping up its health and safety mechanisms to handle the influx of
internally displaced persons (IDPs) -- particularly women and pregnant mothers.
"At least 3,000 pregnant women have fled the fighting in northern Sri Lanka
in recent days and some 350 will give birth in the next month.
"Health facilities are overstretched but so far we are not aware of any
maternal death. It could help further if we have comprehensive emergency care
to treat and manage complicated pregnancies," an UNFPA official told Bernama.
MERCY Malaysia's medical team coordinator Dr Diana Zaireen said that it was
a common trend that birth rate increased during disasters.
"(Here) it is a medically complicated issue, pregnant mothers and babies are
exposed to undernourishment and dehydration in the camps.
"We need to increase the MISP (minimum initial service package or emergency
health kits) for them," the doctor, who was part of the group that set up four
mobile clinics in Vavuniya last week, told Bernama.
MERCY's clinics located inside these camps are equipped to handle antenatal,
postnatal, immunisation and child development programmes.
An estimated 190,000 war victims managed to escape from LTTE fighters, who
had been using them as human shield, and safely reached the camps in Menik Farm,
in Vavuniya, located about 240 km northeast of Colombo.
"All these years we suffered so much because of this war and lost everything
we had. For months my family had been hiding in the jungles to avoid shelling.
Now I just want a peaceful life and take care of my four-month old baby and
return to Jaffna where we lived before," said Tamilarasi, a young mother who
arrived in the camp about 10 days ago.
Many young mothers cuddling their infants and also pregnant women, with
limited clothing and nutritional food, are currently sheltered in the camps set
up by the Sri Lankan government and the United Nations.
The UNFPA official said that some of the main challenges faced are lack of
human resources and high turnover of health staff, hence, there is no adequate
orientation for health staff to provide care and identify the danger signs of
complicated pregnancies.
"There is an urgent need to have the health posts in the IDP camps where
pregnant women can be routinely checked and psychosocial support and
counselling provided in privacy," the official said.
Typically, around 15 percent of women giving birth will develop
complications that require blood transfusions or emergency surgical care.
Pregnancy related disabilities and death often rise in conflict situations
when reproductive health services are disrupted, warned UNFPA.
-- BERNAMA
VAVUNIYA (Sri Lanka), May 14 (Bernama) -- The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) expects some 350 pregnant women to give birth in camps in Northern Sri Lanka next month where ferocious battle between government troops and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) is still raging on.
The agency said that thousands of pregnant women had fled the fighting zone
and it is stepping up its health and safety mechanisms to handle the influx of
internally displaced persons (IDPs) -- particularly women and pregnant mothers.
"At least 3,000 pregnant women have fled the fighting in northern Sri Lanka
in recent days and some 350 will give birth in the next month.
"Health facilities are overstretched but so far we are not aware of any
maternal death. It could help further if we have comprehensive emergency care
to treat and manage complicated pregnancies," an UNFPA official told Bernama.
MERCY Malaysia's medical team coordinator Dr Diana Zaireen said that it was
a common trend that birth rate increased during disasters.
"(Here) it is a medically complicated issue, pregnant mothers and babies are
exposed to undernourishment and dehydration in the camps.
"We need to increase the MISP (minimum initial service package or emergency
health kits) for them," the doctor, who was part of the group that set up four
mobile clinics in Vavuniya last week, told Bernama.
MERCY's clinics located inside these camps are equipped to handle antenatal,
postnatal, immunisation and child development programmes.
An estimated 190,000 war victims managed to escape from LTTE fighters, who
had been using them as human shield, and safely reached the camps in Menik Farm,
in Vavuniya, located about 240 km northeast of Colombo.
"All these years we suffered so much because of this war and lost everything
we had. For months my family had been hiding in the jungles to avoid shelling.
Now I just want a peaceful life and take care of my four-month old baby and
return to Jaffna where we lived before," said Tamilarasi, a young mother who
arrived in the camp about 10 days ago.
Many young mothers cuddling their infants and also pregnant women, with
limited clothing and nutritional food, are currently sheltered in the camps set
up by the Sri Lankan government and the United Nations.
The UNFPA official said that some of the main challenges faced are lack of
human resources and high turnover of health staff, hence, there is no adequate
orientation for health staff to provide care and identify the danger signs of
complicated pregnancies.
"There is an urgent need to have the health posts in the IDP camps where
pregnant women can be routinely checked and psychosocial support and
counselling provided in privacy," the official said.
Typically, around 15 percent of women giving birth will develop
complications that require blood transfusions or emergency surgical care.
Pregnancy related disabilities and death often rise in conflict situations
when reproductive health services are disrupted, warned UNFPA.
-- BERNAMA
