Visiting nurses support families with newborns in Ukraine
UNICEF and the Ministry of Health of Ukraine are implementing a home-visiting programme for families in 12 regions of Ukraine.
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A car emblazoned with sunshine and clouds drives up to a house in Khlopchytsi village, in Ukraine’s Lvivska region. Like always, home-visiting nurse Nadiia Shyika is here to visit little Demian, who will soon turn nine months old.
Demian is Olha and Volodymyr’s first child, so the young parents often have questions about care, vaccinations and breastfeeding. Nadiia also uses her regular visits to assess Demian’s health and development.
“My husband works every day and sometimes he has to go to work on weekends,” explains Olha. “The nurse comes and examines my child at home. I don't have to ask my husband to help me take my child to the outpatient clinic every time. It's much easier and calmer.”
During her visits, Nadiia weighs the baby and takes all the necessary measurements.
“I always ask what the child should be able to do for his age, whether Demian is developing well, whether he knows everything that children of his age should know. I didn't know how to properly breastfeed my child, but Nadiia showed me everything and advised me on lactation. We quickly established breastfeeding.”
Nadiia also talks to Olha and Volodymyr about vaccinations and disease prevention.
“I want my child to be less exposed to danger,” says Olha. “Vaccinated means protected. I asked Nadiia which vaccine to choose and when to get the vaccination. We have already given Demian three vaccinations when he was two, four and six months old, respectively.”
Olha says she can ask Nadiia questions at any time and receive comprehensive answers.
“I can ask not only about my child's health but also about his upbringing,” says Olha, smiling. “Nadiia will always tell me how to do the right thing.”
“When I arrive and see him smiling, it is the best reward”
Nadiia has worked as a nurse for over a decade and began working as a home-visiting nurse in July 2023. To receive her qualification, she completed special training for nurses through the home-visiting programme ‘Care from Birth at Home’, initiated by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
“UNICEF has been very supportive, including with expert advice and supervision,” says Nadiia. “The Lviv team of trainers noticed me and offered to work with them. Now, I am also helping nurses to learn and have already conducted my first training for colleagues from the Volynska region.”
Nadiia visits an average of 14 to 16 families per month. Her visits start in the final weeks of pregnancy and, for the first month of a child's life, she will visit at least three times. Then, until the child turns three, she visits once a month.
If a child is diagnosed with developmental risks, an individualized family visitation plan is drawn up.
“I have to make at least 11 visits to every family in total,” explains Nadiia. “In the last weeks of a woman's pregnancy, I prepare her for breastfeeding. To start, I visit every baby on the sixth or seventh day of his life, then a week later, and finally at one month. During the first visits, I talk about the importance of breastfeeding and conduct vaccination awareness campaigns.”
On her first visit, Nadiia gets to know the child's family.
“A visit to an individual family helps me understand the situation of its young mother. I can talk to the woman in a comfortable environment. I can see whether the father is involved in caring for their child, what kind of support the young mother has and from whom, and what kind of conditions the family lives in.”
Amid an ongoing war which has led to scores of families being forced from home, Nadiia often works in remote communities, travelling in a car provided by UNICEF.
“The car helps me a lot in my work. I can plan my visits to families and arrive on time. Ultimately, thanks to our own transport, we can reach more children and go to the most remote villages.”
“When I arrive and examine a baby and see him smiling, it is the best reward and motivation to keep working.”
The ‘Care from Birth at Home’ programme is implemented by UNICEF, in partnership with the Ministry of Health of Ukraine and with the financial support of the governments of Spain and Japan, as well as UNICEF offices in Spain and the Netherlands. In 2023, thanks to the support of the European Union, UNICEF conducted 15 training sessions for more than 500 doctors and nurses from 200 institutions in 11 Ukrainian regions.
