Obstetric Care in Belladère to Meet the Demand of Pregnant Women

BELLADÈRE, Haiti.— The Minister of Public Health and Population, Bertrand Sinal, visited the commune of Belladère, in the Centre department, last week to assess the health situation in this border area, according to a report from the Communication office of the Ministry of Public Health and Population (MSPP).

Despite the presence of several community health centers, access to specialized care such as obstetrics and gynecology remains limited, Bertrand Sinal first noted. The head of the MSPP immediately committed to addressing this problem, the report states.

Furthermore, there is a lack of staff to meet the demands of the local population and those from other cities in the country. Finally, there is a problem of adequate equipment to offer necessary services, especially to pregnant women who are often forced to risk seeking better care across the border, lamented Dr. Sinal.

During this visit, commitments were made to strengthen the capacity of local health centers in Belladère and other border areas. Thanks to UNFPA's support, Minister Sinal took the opportunity to hand over C-section kits, enabling such operations to be performed on-site.

Pregnant women who need them will no longer be forced to seek care elsewhere, the MSPP announced, boasting of this symbolic gesture considered an important step in the fight against morbidity and a major effort in improving the quality of care for women in particular.

The ministry also committed to regularly supplying Belladère hospitals to ensure the sustainability and continuity of services.

In a context where most public hospitals and health infrastructures are destroyed by armed gangs during deadly attacks in controlled areas, guaranteeing obstetric care in border areas could relieve Haitian women who, in search of better care for their newborns, were giving birth in the Dominican Republic, often in undignified conditions.

Jean Mapou