Saving Mothers in Malawi

Voice 1:
Welcome to Spotlight. I'm Liz Waid

Voice 2:
And I'm Joshua Leo. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.

Voice 1:
In the small village of Pitala, a woman stands in front of a tree. She holds a can of paint, and a small brush. With the brush, she paints words on the tree. When she is done, she steps back to read the words. The message is simple. It is for everyone in the village. It says that during childbirth, women should go to the hospital. The woman is satisfied. Now everyone can see the message. Everyone can encourage new mothers and fathers to get good medical help during childbirth.

Voice 2:
In Pitala, this message is saving lives. But why has this message been so successful in Pitala? Today's Spotlight is on Pitala and their new message to men and women.

Voice 1:
Pitala is in the African country of Malawi. Malawi has a very high rate of deaths during pregnancy and childbirth. Researchers call these deaths maternal mortality. In Malawi, more than 1100 women die for every 100,000 live births. This is the second highest number of maternal deaths in all of Africa. And when a mother dies during pregnancy or childbirth, it is much more likely that the new baby will die too.

Voice 2:
Why is this rate so high in Malawi? The reason is not easy to see. Malawi has a stable government. It is not experiencing war or other conflict. But experts say that the rate is high for many reasons. One reason is that almost half of the children born in Malawi are born without the help of a trained medical person. Malawi is a very poor country. Many people believe that they cannot pay for a doctor. So they do not get care during pregnancy.

Voice 1:
Poverty also affects the number of doctors. There are not enough doctors, nurses and other specialist health workers. Many doctors are trained in Malawi. But after they are trained, many of these doctors move to other countries. They hope to receive better pay.

Voice 2:
But sometimes, the doctor is not the problem. In Malawi, many people believe that all first born children should be born at home. This cultural belief puts many pregnant women's lives in danger.

Voice 1:
The village of Pitala is not different than other villages in Malawi. The women face many of these problems during pregnancy and childbirth. First, there is no trained medical person in the village. Instead the people trust the traditional birth attendant. This attendant has a lot of knowledge. She has successfully helped many women give birth. She has brought many healthy babies into the world. But she does not have medical training, like a midwife. And in a medical emergency, she does not have the skills to save the mother or the baby.

Voice 2:
And second, the village is very poor. The people do not have the money to use a car. For a long time, there was no way to get a pregnant woman to the nearest hospital.

Voice 1:
But things have slowly been changing in Pitala. The first change was in the job of the traditional birth attendant. Now the attendant cares for women during pregnancy. She gives them good advice, and watches for problems. Village chief Margret Thole talked about this change to journalist Karen Allen of the BBC. Chief Thole said,

Voice 3:
"It is now the main job of the birth attendant to visit the women and give the message."

Voice 1:
And what is this message? It is that women should give birth at the hospital.