An independent voice for ethical adoption
Maison de Naissance
Ethica is profiling just one of many organizations in need of support in the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti: Maison de Naissance
The organization’s work demonstrates how women and children’s access to basic medical care can help prevent orphanhood.
Maison de Naissance, located 100 miles southwest of Port-of-Prince, was formed in 2004 to provide free medical care to mothers and infants. Services range from prenatal care and delivery to in-home follow up care to keep mothers alive and give their babies a healthy start. For high risk pregnancies, mothers are transported by ambulance to the closest hospital, with a voucher for payment and an accompanying staff member. Without upfront payment, mothers are refused service.
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The vision at the outset for Maison de Naissance was to make it community operated. To that end, the organization is completely run by Haitian staff members. As a result, service delivery has improved because community care is provided by the community. Maison de Naissance serves a community of more than 10,000 people. The percentage of women receiving prenatal care in its zone of service has increased from 51 to 99. The percentage of births supervised by a skilled birth attendant has increased from 13 to 91, and more than 1,500 babies have been delivered at the clinic. The neonatal mortality rate in its zone of service has dropped more than two-thirds and increasing numbers of women from outside its zone of service are beginning to seek healthcare there.
Fortunately, Maison de Naissance suffered no direct damage from the earthquake but it is experiencing skyrocketing operating costs. For example, the clinic remains open 24 hours a day. Although the facility has solar panels, generators operating from diesel are necessary to maintain electricity at night. With the difficulty of supplies getting into Haiti, diesel has inflated to $12 per gallon. Medical supplies currently are also hard to come by at the moment. Donations received will be used to meet these operating costs so that care can still continue to be provided to mothers and their children.
Maison de Naissance survives on individual donations. Please consider making a donation today.
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