In the month of April, 10 new babies were enrolled in our program (including 5 orphans, 1 baby whose mother was in the ICU, and 4 infants whose mothers were not producing breast milk). Nurses visited 138 or the 229 currently enrolled. 544 tins of formula were distributed. Tragically, eight month old Memory A. who had been in our program since October died from malaria, on route to the hospital from his village. Twenty-two babies graduated from our program.
Baby Admission Story
Miracle’s mother was pregnant for the fifth time. At 34 she only had one living child. She delivered two stillborns and another baby had died within the first week of life. Every day was filled with a mix of anxiety and hope. She knew she was HIV positive and received the necessary treatment to reduce the risk of passing the disease to her baby. She attended her prenatal visits and the midwives assured her that the pregnancy was normal. As her pregnancy progressed, though, she felt her health deteriorating. There was a horrible persistent pain in her neck that no one could diagnose. Then one day early in her eighth month, she had severe abdominal pain and started bleeding heavily. She went quickly to the hospital and her baby girl was delivered by c-section.
Due to prematurity and her low birth weight, baby Miracle stayed in the hospital for her first two weeks of life. Meanwhile, Miracle’s mother continued to complain of severe neck pain and within the first month of her daughter’s life, she passed away at home. Initially Miracle’s aunt cared for her orphaned niece at home giving her regular reconstituted powdered milk. She soon realized that the baby was not doing well on the milk and went to the local clinic to seek help, nurses there directed her to Joyful Motherhood for assistance.