Health & Nutrition

The Needs

 

In 2018, 5.3 million children under the age of five died mostly from preventable causes1. Strengthening health systems to provide such interventions to all children will save many young lives.

Malnourished children, particularly those with severe acute malnutrition, have a higher risk of death from common childhood illness such as diarrhoea, pneumonia, and malaria. Nutrition-related factors contribute to about 45% of deaths in children under-5 years of age2.

Mothers and infants are particularly vulnerable to the detrimental health effects of complications that can arise during pregnancy or childbirth, as well as malnutrition. These challenges are aggravated by limited access to hospitals and health professionals. Many mothers choose to give birth at home rather than walk hours to the nearest health post

 

*World Health Organization, 2018

*World Health Organization, 2018

Miheret is 13 years old and fetches water for her family from the dirty pond near her home. Her father related that as a result of no access to clean water, Miheret once swallowed a big worm when drinking water from the pond.

The worm stopped in the middle of her throat as she choked. Together with a lack of healthcare knowledge, the family tried to feed the girl strong alcohol to kill the worm. However, the girl remained ill, until professional medical care arrived, at the referral of World Vision.

 

 

Polluted water contributes to malnutrition in children

Key Challenges

Insufficient Healthcare Facilities

Rural health posts are shared among a number of villages, which means that those who are ill have to walk hours across difficult terrain to access healthcare. These health centres are poorly maintained and lack proper medical equipment to treat illnesses.

Unskilled Attendants

Health workers in the community lack proper training and, as a consequence, have limited knowledge on how to treat even basic illnesses. Some families may also resort to traditional healers, a choice which can cause more harm than good.

Limited Knowledge among Caregivers

Parents and primary caregivers are uneducated and unaware of the preventive measures, symptoms and cures for common childhood illnesses. Left untreated, these can become life-threatening. Mothers and mothers-to-be also lack knowledge on proper pre- and post-natal care.

Gender Discrimination

Maternal health gets minimal attention simply because it concerns powerless and voiceless women. A staggering 99% of maternal deaths during childbirth occur in developing nations.* There are also many cases of early marriage, and young girls, whose bodies have not fully matured, are at high risk of health complications.

How We Help

Integrated healthcare approaches for improved nutrition

The two major milestones are a child's first 1,000 days and the first five years. Once children reach the age of five, their chances of survival increases dramatically. World Vision's health strategy focuses on helping children and mothers through programmes that address both the symptoms and root causes of the problem:

  • Appropriate nutritional practices and ante- and post-natal care for mothers
  • Clean water to prevent diseases like diarrhoea
  • Year-long food security through agricultural training
  • Sustain interventions through improving livelihoods and provide microfinance so mothers can eke out a living through vegetable home gardening and household poultry rearing. Through these interventions, parents are able to purchase more nutritious food and children receive the right nutrition for healthy development

Prevent the spread of infectious and communicable diseases

Malaria remains a major killer of children around the world. Every two minutes, one child’s life is needlessly lost to malaria. By raising awareness of appropriate prevention and treatment measures, many preventable deaths can be averted.

  • Provide bed nets
  • Provide bicycles so health workers can reach pregnant moms and children under 5 with prevention information
  • Provide rapid diagnosis kits so severe forms of malaria that are life threatening can be treated as soon as possible

Provide access to clean water

By constructing water treatment systems, wells and boreholes, children will have clean water to drink without worms in their tumms, and will not have to suffer from water-borne diseases like diarrhoea.

 

No one government or organisation can solve the problem of child mortality alone. In addition to the above, World Vision partners with the relevant stakeholders on the ground to achieve lasting and sustainable results.

 

Our Impact

Consolatte's Story
(Click to read)

Seasonal floods and swampy, stagnant waters contribute to high rates of malaria in Zambia. They are a breeding ground for mosquitoes, among them the dreaded malaria-carriers. Based on the reported cases of malaria in Kapiri-Mposhi in 2009, it was estimated that approximately 54% - 58% of the population was infected by malaria (Against Malaria Foundation, 2009). In Africa, one’s child life is lost to malaria every two minutes.

Last night, Consolatte could feel the fever rising. She never thought that just a little mosquito could cause so much harm. Her child Divin spent days crying and burning up with fever, struggling for breath.

I am relieved that my child is diagnosed,” says Consolatte, after her child Divin was diagnosed with a rapid testing kit and given treatment. Delays in recognition and appropriate care of malaria increase morbidity and mortality. The major complications of severe malaria threaten her child’s life, including cerebral malaria, pulmonary edema, acute renal failure, severe anemia, and bleeding.

Malaria infection during pregnancy can lead to miscarriage, premature delivery, low birth weight, congenital infection, and perinatal death. Timely testing, treatment and prevention with bed nets makes a whole lot of difference. Above all training by health workers on the right way to use bed nets is crucial. Previously, bed nets were not used because of heat, and villagers found alternative use for them as chicken coups or fish nets.

 

In FY18, with the support of our donors, we were able to help in these ways:

  

To read the latest report on our healthcare & nutrition projects, click here. 

 

 

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