Maternidad en Haití

UN Photo/Sophia Paris

The United Nations (UN) said about 7,000 women are due to give birth this month as medical teams continue to work around the clock in birthing tents to deliver Haiti’s newborns. According to UNICEF, there are currently 120,000 pregnant women in Haiti, more than half are in earthquake-affected areas. It is estimated that 15 percent of the 63,000 pregnant women in affected areas are likely to have potentially life-threatening complications. Post natal-care is also proving to be a challenge in a country where the medical infrastructure has been destroyed leaving only a few hospitals functional and many medical personnel themselves dead or injured. The World Health Organization’s (WHO) doctors say that only breastfeeding can boost the baby’s immune system and improve its chances of survival in situations like Haiti.