Save Community Care Foundation (SCCF) in partnership with Ryvanz-Mia Charity Corp, Kaliro Town Council Health Centre II, District Probation Officer, Village Health Teams and Local Council Stakeholders of Kaliro to bring near integrated Health Service to vulnerable people in the hard to reach communities with Nutrition supplements for children aged 6-59 months, give clothes to children and AGYW, trains AGYW to make safe, washable, reusable sanitary pads and Sexual education.
We managed to reach 111 Adolescent Girls and Young Women (AGYW) with training on how to make safe, washable, reusable sanitary pads and Sexual education in three sessions, the first session had 37 participants, the second session had 37 participants, and the third session also had 37 participants We reached 683 children with Vitamin A and Deworming tablets for children aged 12-59 months, and the younger mothers received nutrition training, education, and sessions through group discussion and interactive teaching methods. Mothers learn about the importance of certain types of foods, breastfeeding, feeding practices, and how to treat various illnesses like children diarrhea and others
We managed to give 50 children clothes; these children are orphaned, neglected, children on ARVs and TB drugs, abandoned, and living in acute poverty.
INTRODUCTION Teenage pregnancy and childbearing contribute to the high maternal mortality ratio, with about 1/3 of all the maternal deaths among young people aged 10 – 24 years. Adolescent girls have a 35% to 55% higher risk of delivering a pre-term or low-birth-weight infant than mothers older than 19 years, and the infant mortality rate is 60% higher amongst newborns of child mothers.
With the absence of sex education, girls are still becoming pregnant, which worsened during the lockdown. It’s become common for mothers to help their daughters obtain illegal abortions rather than endure the stigma of being an unwed teenage mother.
Due to the inability to afford proper menstrual products, girls and young mothers have no choice but to rely on improvised materials to absorb their menstrual flow. Girls’ options range from using old sponges and scraps of old clothes materials that are not hygienic, effective, or comfortable, which leads to their poor attendance and poor performance in class, causing them to drop out of school.
SPONSORSHIP
Our heartfelt gratitude goes to; Ryvanz-Mia Charity Corp, which played a significant role in sponsoring the activity financially, coordinating and managing the organization’s website and other social media networks for the organization exercise. Many thanks to Kaliro Town Council Health Centre II and District Probation Officer for helping in observing SOPs and MOH guidelines in the outreach. Village Health Teams (VHTs) and Local Council Stakeholders of Kaliro who help in mobilizing, sensitizing, and conducting community education.
We reached out to 770 residents of Kaliro, out of which were 659 who received Vitamin A and deworming tablets and 111 Adolescent Girls and Young Women (AGYW) with training on how to make safe, washable, reusable sanitary pads and sexual education. We did reach out to children and Adolescent Girls and Young mothers through the use of Village Health Teams and Local Council Stakeholders who help us to mobilize and reach information to all our beneficiaries in Bulangira, Zibondo, Bugabwe, Budini, and Buwalujo village where SCCF beneficiaries are staying.
683 children with Vitamin A and Deworming tablets for children aged 12-59 months, the younger mothers received nutrition training Education and sessions through group discussion and interactive teaching methods, mothers learn about the importance of certain types of foods, breastfeeding, feeding practices and how to treat various illnesses like children diarrhea and others.
50 children with clothes, these children are orphaned, neglected, Children on ARVs and TB drugs, abandoned, and living in acute poverty
How Girls and Women Benefited from Integrated Health Outreach.
Better health In many villages in the Kaliro district and neighboring districts, women and girls are forced to use whatever they can to manage their periods, including rags, newspapers, and even tree leaves. For women and girls who can access some sanitary towels, many have no choice but to re-use the same, used one for many days. In both instances, women and girls put their health at serious risk.
Better education and ability to work
Lack of access to sanitary protection has both short and long-term repercussions for girls and women. Period poverty, including the stigma surrounding menstruation, stops women and girls from going to school or work, leading them to miss out on their education or vital income to support themselves or contribute to their communities. In the long run, a lack of education can have several devastating impacts on a girl’s life, including the possibility of child marriage, early pregnancy, and vulnerability to violence and abuse. Lower cost Disposable sanitary pads are expensive. A pack of sanitary pads can cost more than a whole day’s pay in Kaliro. Since most women and girls need at least two boxes per period, this means spending two days’ pay every month on sanitary pads alone.
CHALLENGES; However, several challenges were encountered in the process and event execution; • Inadequate Funding. It was a big challenge as the organization didn’t have staff with skills of communication, marketing, and fundraising campaign skill to raise money to support the event since it was doing the very first of this kind event in 2021 following the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown where most companies that would have sponsored it were not operational. We did not reach out to these people through Radio talk shows. We drove through the town council and the neighboring sub-counties of Kaliro district and the Busoga sub-region of Buyende, Luuka, Namutumba, Kamuli, and Iganga district. • Overwhelming numbers; The organization had budgeted for 200 children maximum and 47 Adolescent Girls and Young mothers (AGYW), but the numbers doubled, calling for improvisation of resources in the organizing committee Conclusion/recommendation
❖ Vocational skilling, enterprise development assistance, and second-chance education for girls. ❖ Raising awareness among parents, religious, cultural leaders, and other community gatekeepers about the long-term benefits of educating girls and other AGYW interventions implement. ❖ Conduct Goal Campaign, organize through skills development, music dance, drama (MDD), Netball tournaments with links to SRH/HIV service delivery. ❖ Conducted radio talk shows sensitizing the public about the dangers of teenage pregnancies, the importance of keeping the girl child in schools. ❖ Start Adolescent Youth Corners in each parish level. ❖ To train senior men and women, teachers were prepared using a package of health education about pregnancy prevention and general counseling of students.