PAKTIYA PROVINCE, Afghanistan – The women sat in a circle and laughed over chai and cookies. They exchanged stories, experiences and advice and were eager to ask and answer questions from one another. With the help of an interpreter, the Afghan and American women connected over stories of babies and children.
A Female Treatment Team, assigned to Special Operations Task Force – East, met with the nurses and midwives of the women’s clinic in the Jaji Aryoub District Hospital to discuss medical education and knowledge, Jaji district, Sept. 25.
The FTT travels to various women’s clinics across eastern Afghanistan to educate women and discuss any concerns they may have. They train the women on basic and intermediate care for women and children. They also discuss the healthcare standards of a medical facility and seek what improvements can be made.
The women spent the morning discussing hygiene, pregnancy, personal care and living standards with the clinic staff, which consisted of four mid-wives and three nurses.
Some women don’t know whether or not they are pregnant when they visit the clinic. A simple pregnancy test given by the nurses will immediately tell the women if they are or not. The clinic staff will then determine how far along in the pregnancy they are and when their estimated due date is. Pregnant women are encouraged to visit the clinic during pregnancies for prenatal care.
“Four times we will call the women to come in during their pregnancy,” said one of the midwives. “We check out the women and we test them to see if the baby is ok.”
Pregnancies at later stages in a woman’s life are more likely to pose health problems for mother and baby. Mothers and their babies are considered to be the priority of the clinic staff.
“All the women who are pregnant at 35 to 40 [years old], those pregnancies are very sensitive,” said a midwife. “We tell them because of their age, if they want to deliver a healthy baby it’s good for them to deliver in the clinic and not in the home.”
The clinic offers regular classes on breast-feeding, hygiene, vaccines and family planning practices. The full-day classes are not publicly advertised but are given to the women who are in the clinic waiting on treatment, who then pass the information onto other women. The classes often consist of up to 50 women.
The women are also taught about abstinence and birth control to effectively manage birth spacing. There are a variety of options for birth control which the women can choose from, ranging from pills to implant devices.
“Some women want a lot of children and some don’t want children for a while, so we help them,” said a mid-wife. “We teach them what they can do, from medicine to abstinence.”
Often, older women come into the clinic asking for help when they have symptoms of menopause, a condition that is common in Afghanistan but has symptoms similar to goiter. Many older women aren’t familiar with the symptoms of menopause because of a lack of education passed down from one generation to the next.
“Some women know about this menopause, but the majority does not,” said one of the nurses. “If they don’t, we tell them. Normally, women don’t know about it.”
The midwives and nurses live at the clinic during a five-year period of employment. The women attend a specialized school for 18 months before choosing the clinic they wish to work at. Of the seven women, there are three sisters who have committed to working and living at the clinic.
The FTT didn’t have to teach a majority of the clinic staff, who were already well-educated and motivated to treat the local women and children in the district.
“This is the best clinic we’ve seen in the country so far,” said an FTT member who was impressed with the level of education and standards of the clinic.
The meeting provided a successful exchange of information between the Afghan and American women. The Afghan women treat women and children and teach them how to take care of themselves to prevent future health issues. By passing on critical knowledge, the Afghan women ensure the health of future generations.
“This meeting was very important and we learned a lot,” said a nurse. “We always want to know more and more. You learn from us and we learn from you.”
| Date Taken: |
09.25.2011 |
| Date Posted: |
10.05.2011 05:34 |
| Story ID: |
78032 |
| Location: |
PAKTIYA, AF |
| Web Views: |
81 |
| Downloads: |
0 |
PUBLIC DOMAIN
Subscribe
