

Thanks to a new CCISD initiative, implemented through the organization’s charity called Santé de base pour les communautés (Basic Health for Communities, or SBC), it is now possible to make donations that will be used to distribute birth kits filled with basic baby products to encourage Haitian mothers to give birth in a health facility.

Launched during CCISD’s 30th anniversary event, $30 for a Healthy Start was inspired by a positive experience of the Project for Integrated Management of Maternal and Child Health in Artibonite (PRISMA) and the "Improving Maternal Health in Haiti’s Artibonite Region" initiative, which - as a complement to other strategies - consisted in distributing such kits to encourage pregnant women to overcome the geographical and economic barriers that limit their access to adequate obstetric and neonatal services.

A small act that can save lives

Despite progress in recent years, maternal and child mortality rates in Haiti remain among the highest in America: about 350 women, per 100,000 births, die while giving birth and more than 30 out of 1000 newborns do not reach two days of life. These alarming mortality rates could be largely reduced if the number of institutional deliveries increased.

"Our experience has shown that a birth kit like this is a factor that can have a positive influence on a woman’s decision to give birth in a health center. For many Haitian mothers, it is an immediate benefit, a source of motivation, because it allows them to take care of their babies and make sure they are clean, well dressed and warm during the first moments of their lives ", explained Dr. Ludzen Sylvestre, Project Coordinator for PRISMA 2, shortly after the launch of the initiative.

Every $30 received through SBC will provide a birth kit for a Haitian mother who gives birth in a health facility. Distributed under the PRISMA 2 project, the kits will contain various items for newborns, including a camisole, soap and diapers.