Maternity waiting homes and safe delivery in Ethiopia
In the Amhara region of Ethiopia, nearly 44 per cent of deliveries happen at home without assistance from a skilled health professional
Maksegnit, Amhara Region, Ethiopia- 03 September 2021 - Mastewal Kassa chats with Yalemwork Getu while enjoying a cup of coffee and freshly puffed popcorn inside the maternity waiting home of the Maksegnit Health Center. Both women have passed the nine months mark in their pregnancy and are soon to deliver their babies.
“It is my first delivery. I don’t want to risk it. That’s why I came here early,” says Mastewal.
Mastewal lives 30 kilometres away from Maksegnit health centre in a remote rural village. She knows that she won’t be able to have a skilled birth attendant if she stays at home and waits for her due date. So, she made a conscious decision. Packing extra clothes in a small plastic bag, she left her village and so she could get to Maksegnit Health Centre two weeks before her expected day of delivery.
In the Amhara region of Ethiopia, nearly 44 per cent of deliveries happen at home without assistance from a skilled health professional1.
Pregnant women who need critical medical follow up often risk birth complications and even death. This is partly because of the difficult journey they have to take to reach the nearest hospital or health centres which are commonly found in urban areas.
Cost, distance and time are the critical variables for women like Mastewal and Yalemwork that determine theirs and their unborn children’s survival.
Bridging the gap in obstetric care between rural areas, with poor access to equipped facilities, and urban areas where the services are available, maternity waiting homes were introduced in Ethiopia in rural hospitals and health centres where deliveries happen.
Maternity waiting homes are common residential facilities built-in or near health facilities. Pregnant women who are considered ‘high risk’ or those who live very far away from health facilities are admitted to these homes shortly before delivery, or earlier for close medical attention.
“The nurses and doctors here visit us every day. I feel safe staying here. Besides, I met Yalemwork who is also having a baby soon,” says Mastewal cracking a beautiful smile.
Maternity waiting homes operate in different modalities. In most parts of Ethiopia, families of pregnant women are responsible to bring food while in others, pregnant women themselves cook and make coffee sharing responsibilities amongst themselves.
What makes the Maksegnit’s Health Centre’s maternity waiting home different is that the community contribute money and hire two full-time stewards who are responsible for cooking and cleaning.
“We clean the room and bedsheets regularly. We also make sure that pregnant women feel at home by making coffee here,” says Meseret Mersha, one of the stewards, while pouring freshly brewed coffee from a pot into a cup.
“Our maternity waiting home is critical to saving the lives of mothers and babies. We are glad that the community take ownership and contribute to the cover of its running cost,” adds Adem Seid, head of the Health Centre.
Though maternity waiting homes are helping to save the lives of mothers and babies, there are still challenges in their operation. Poor infrastructure and inadequate sanitation in the facilities are some of the common problems that need improvement.
With active community engagement and the leadership of the regional health bureau, 75 per cent of health centres in the Amhara region have maternity waiting homes2. UNICEF also supports by providing supplies like beds, blankets and mosquito nets, training health workers on quality Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) services, and preparing standard guidelines on the use of maternity waiting homes.
“We work with community members so that pregnant women have access to these facilities as early as possible,” says Ambanesh Necho, UNICEF Health Specialist. “Pregnant women need the support of their families, neighbours and relatives.”
Mastewal and Yalemwork are counting the days. Families and loved ones eagerly await the arrival of their babies. Help is also available nearby. But, until their delivery day comes, they have to keep calm and apply whatever advice is given to them by the health workers.
