The Mother and Baby Unit
at Bamenda Regional Hospital, North West Cameroon
The perinatal mortality (death during pregnancy and just after) in Cameroon is more than 10 times that in the UK and a leading cause of death is infection.
There are around 2,400 deliveries a year in the maternity ward at Bamenda Regional Hospital, and many are high risk deliveries and involve complications. If babies are ill or premature, they are cared for in the Mother and Baby Unit (neonatal unit). Sick babies born at home or in other clinics, or any baby aged less than one month who needs hospital care is also admitted to the unit. Sometimes these babies have been abandoned. The main causes of death in newborn babies are infection, lack of oxygen at birth and prematurity. The unit is absolutely vital, caring for around 700 seriously sick new born babies every year.
The unit was previously very crowded with no room for mothers to care for their ill babies. We funded an extension to the unit so that mothers can now sleep near their babies and offer better care. There is also a hot and cold nursery for premature babies.
In 2010 we raised funds to build a sanitary block to provide better facilities for the mothers of sick babies in the neonatal unit. With the completion of this project we hope to achieve:
- Improved care for mothers & their seriously sick babies
- Easy access to washing and toilet facilities for the recovering mothers. It is not suitable for women who have just given birth to be walking from one part of the hospital to another to use such facilities when they should be resting and recovering
- Reduced infection. The introduction of washing facilities will reduce infection
Baby Beatrice in Cameroon
We have been working at the Mother and Baby Unit at Bamenda Regional Hospital since 2001. This photo is of baby Beatrice, who is two weeks old, with her grandmother. Beatrice was born prematurely and received treatment in the unit. She made a good recovery and is due to return home today. Beatrice’s mother rested in the new room that we built.