Birthing Babies! - Leah

I was very lucky and able to spend a day at the Karen Maternity Ward.  This is the clinic that women in labor go to spend labor and birth their children.  This is a free clinic that the moms go to to deliver their babies if no complications are expected.

When women go into labor they usually start their journey to the clinic.  Some women live many miles from the clinic and need to walk to get there.  The clinic is one big room. On one side of a curtain there are beds for laboring. Men are not allowed to be with their wives since there is no privacy.  Outside sometimes the Dads just hang out and wait - many never even come.

 Women labor and deliver in silence.  When they are ready to deliver there is a small room with 2 beds in it. There is no bedding.  Each women has to bring in their own Kangas and they lay one of them out on the plastic (that is sometimes cleaned between women).  The other one is for the baby to be wrapped into when it is born.  The women also have to bring their own cotton for cleaning and discharge and their own sutures in case they need them post delivery.  The clinic provides no supplies for labor, no blankets, no food, no water.  Within minutes after the delivery the women stand up and clean up the bed.  Put their belongings in a bag and walk out to the 'recovery' side of the room.

 Once they deliver the babies they are allowed to stay 12 hours, then get discharged. The Mom's and Babies are supposed to come back at one week to check them both.

Moms waiting

Families getting ready to go home - this is the only time men are allowed in the clinic.  Often only sisters and mothers come out and help the new mom home.  This is almost always a very joyful time.  So many smiles and the new families are often very happy to show off the new additions!

There were 4 women in labor when I was got there.  The night before there had been so many births that they were overflowing into the labor beds.  The four women were sharing 2 beds.

I was there that day with a NICU nurse and a Nurse Midwife.  They were both assisting the women in labor.  Usually women labor alone and in silence.  The nurses that work there were on a bed watching a World Cup rerun from the night before.  The nurses check all women that show up at the door, and then only get involved for the actual delivery.  Our nurses were rubbing backs, holding hands, talking to them about breathing and assisting in moving them to different labor positions.  This is something that is very unusual.  

We had 2 women that were farther along in their labor than the other two.  They both got very close at the same time.  As they went into the labor room they used their Kangas to cover the beds.  They climbed up on the table.  The nurses are not very nice when the women are delivering.  They push the belly and yell at the moms.  It was very surreal to be seeing it knowing how in the US the nurses are so patient and kind to moms.  Both women delivered withing a few minutes of each other. Both babies were healthy and beautiful!