EFSTH Celebrates “world Prematurity Day”
Edward Francis small Teaching Hospital with its Broad of Directors and various departments like Neonatal ICU and the Department of paediatrics joined the rest of the world to raise awareness on the causes of premature babies in the Gambia with a match pass from never again memorial to EFSTH’s ground with the theme ” Kangaroo mother: Small Actions Big Impact.”
Prof. Augusta Eneh a Neonatalogist consultant. explained that when a Premature baby is born before its 37 weeks of pregnancy which will tend the parent to go through immense difficulties to maintain their body temperature, adding that this year’s theme is to maintain the body temperature of the babies.
She further manifested that the one of the ways to maintain the baby’s temperature is cost effective which can be practice anywhere with the mother’s wrapper or anyone from the family member, which is call “Kangaroo Mother Care” generated from the animal Kangaroo that has a pouch to protects its new born baby to suck its (mother’s) breast to obtain the nutritional feature.
The Neonatalogist Consultant concluded that, the “Kangaroo mother care” assist to create bonding between the mother and her baby with brain development and prevent infection which further helps to reduce the long constitute stay in the hospital to prevent the preterm babies not to take long period of time in the hospital before they are discharged.
Meanwhile, Dr. Lamin Makalo a Paediatrics Senior Registra said that they started the “Kangaroo mother care” in 2022 which he said has taken momentum and that the doctors in the hospital have taken it upon themselves to sensitized the public about Prematurity, and that in their department 25% of their admission are born early (Premature).
Adding that prematurity can be preventable by sensitizing the public about it to diminish the mortality, which needs commitment and immense resources. He urged philanthropists and individual that has the means to come forward and assist them.
Nonetheless, Sierra Barry mother to a Premature baby said that her child was a Preterm baby who was taken cared of properly at the EFSTH with the important “Kangaroo mother care ” technique forming the baby to grow faster and reduce the baby’s body temperature and she thank God that her child is now healthy and strong.
In conclusion, World Prematurity day is observed on 17th November, to raise awareness about preterm birth globally.
