Essential Nutrition Action with MSH BASICS-Produced by Chancy Mauluka

“Malaria! Not a Spell,” Says the Patrick Family of Mbindi

by Chancy Mauluka on August 12, 2011

in Women's Health

If you grow up in places like Kasungu district in rural Malawi, you learn that when your wife is pregnant, you should not have sex outside marriage—because you will lose the “expected gift” through miscarriage. Male promiscuity during a partner’s pregnancy is a taboo that many believe will bring a curse on the family.

Patricia Patrick says that after she miscarried in November 2008 “People talked in the village, and people talked within the household. My relatives asked me suspicious questions.” They wondered whether sexual misbehavior by her husband caused the tragedy. She remembers her husband telling his side of the story to prove his innocence, but nobody believed him.

Adre Phiri (left), Health Education Volunteer for Mbindi Area speaks well of the Patricks: “They have eased my job!”

But in December 2009, with technical and financial support from the USAID-funded, Management Sciences for Health-led, BASICS project, the Red Cross Society trained Health Surveillance Assistants and community health education volunteers on facts about malaria. These frontline workers learned how to effectively conduct village-based campaigns through different communication channels. After the trainings, volunteers conducted meetings and household visits in villages with support from the Health Surveillance Assistants. One of the topics discussed during these meetings was the danger of malaria to pregnant women. Pregnant women were encouraged to take two doses of SP (an antimalarial drug) at the fourth and seventh month of pregnancy. The meetings taught that malaria in pregnancy may cause a miscarriage. Pregnant women were encouraged towards early attendance of the Antenatal Clinic (ANC) so they would a chance to access the two doses, as well as receive an insecticide treated net.

Learning about Malria gave the Patrick family comfort and helped them understand their experience with miscarriage. “I remembered that during the first pregnancy, my wife was frequently attacked by malaria. We never wanted history to repeat itself. So we made it a point that she visit the clinic as required and take the two doses of SP.”

“The Patrick family is a light in the dark,” says Village Headman Mbindi

In February 2010, after taking the steps to prevent any episodes of malaria during her pregnancy, Patricia Patrick delivered a baby boy named Peterson. Before February 2010, it was difficult to challenge such suspicions because the Mbindi villagers subscribed to their culture’s traditional explanations of miscarriage.

Patricia is currently a role model for prevention of malaria in pregnancy in her village. Village Headman Mbindi describes the family as “a light for the village.” Adre Phiri, the Health Education Volunteer for Mbindi, echoes the Headman and says the Patricks have eased his job: “At least people now can hear my messages through testimonies. I am extremely happy that my campaign is bearing fruit,” says Phiri.

Chancy Mauluka is Behavior Change Communications Officer/BASICS Malawi.

Aiming to Prevent 25,000 Child Deaths from Diarrhea with Zinc in Malawi

August 3, 2011 - In 2009 and 2010, Malawi developed a national strategy to prevent more than 25,000 child deaths per year by using zinc to treat and prevent diarrhea. The government of Malawi and BASICS, funded by USAID and led by MSH, with support from UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO), have oriented more than 2,000 communications officers and their supervisors to a national strategic communications plan for the use of zinc and trained nearly 4,000 health workers in the administration of zinc.

The national strategic communications plan promotes awareness of diarrhea as a leading cause of death for children under five and guides all messages on the use of zinc. The messages encourage parents and caregivers to seek treatment upon the onset on diarrhea and follow proper treatment protocol, including appropriate provision of food and fluids. To train health workers, Malawi developed a trainers’ manual that provides detailed guidelines for the treatment of diarrhea.

UNICEF and the WHO have recommended zinc as a treatment and prevention aid for diarrhea in children under the age of five, supplementing oral rehydration salts, since 2004.

For additional information or to arrange for a press interview, please contact Barbara Ayotte, Director of Strategic Communications, at 617.852.6011 or bayotte@msh.org for readers in Malawi contact cmauluka@msh.org (MSH) or achikumbe@yahoo.com (Ministry of Health-Health Education Unit)

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MALAWI RISES EARLY TO LAUNCH THE SUN

Malawi Rises Early to Launch the Sun

By Chancy Batson Mauluka, Global Health Journalist.

After being launched by the United Nations Secretary General in September 2010, the government of Malawi, on 28^th July 2011, through the Office of President and Cabinet (OPC), launched the SUN 1000 Special Days Campaign in Malawi. The SUN (Scaling up Nutrition) 1000 Special Days Campaign is an approach of implementing nutrition activities that cover the first one thousand days of a child’s life. The one thousand days signify the number of days from pregnancy (conception) to the time the child is two years old. The SUN emphasizes on the 1000 days because this is the crucial period in life since stunting, underweight, wasting and any other malnutrition disorders that occur during the first 100 days, are not reversible.

The launch was graced by Madam Callister Mutharika, first lady of the republic of Malawi who is the Safe Motherhood Ambassador for the country and the Coordinator for Nutrition and HIV in the Office of President and Cabinet (OPC). Of all the nations the world over, the launch makes Malawi a first riser in Scaling Up Nutrition and positions Malawi with the best commitment to haut stunting and other malnutrition disorders. At the launch, different government departments and partners (private and public) displayed themes surrounding the seven Essential Nutrition Actions (ENA).

The seven Essential Nutrition Actions are Maternal Nutrition for Pregnant and Lactating Mothers, Exclusive Breastfeeding for the First 6 Months of the Infant’s Life, Timely Introduction to Complementary Feeding Coupled with Continuation of Breastfeeding up to Two Years, Feeding of the Sick Child, Control of vitamin A Deficiency, Control Iron Deficiency; and Control of Iodine Deficiency. Other cross-cutting issues in Essential Nutrition Actions for Infant and Young Child Nutrition include hygiene, family planning, prevention and control of Malaria and prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV.

Mounting their displays, public, private and civil society organizations wrapped the themes in six major components which showed Dietary Diversification, Food Fortification, Complementary Feeding, Pregnancy and Breastfeeding, Micronutrient Supplementation and Treatment of Malnutrition.

Under the SUN, Malawi is committed to reduce stunting by 50%.

Get a brief glimpse of the first lady’s speech that called stakeholders to action:

The availability of the Nutrition Policy, Strategic Plan and various on-going nutrition programs have contributed to the reduction of under-nutrition in general. Adequate nutrition is vital for both human and national development. Adequate nutrition is consuming a diversified, varied and nutritious diet made from the six food groups of Malawi. The diet must be served in right quantities, using right combinations with right frequency for human well being and productivity. Under-nutrition has devastating consequences which manifest into wasting, stunting and underweight. Productivity of a stunting person is compromised. Malnutrition in children below the age of five years has the risk of permanently causing physical and mental retardation and impaired intellectual and professional abilities with negative impact on the economic prosperity of an individual, a family, a community and a nation.

What is pleasing is that Malawi has made tremendous progress in the reduction of mal, moderate and acute malnutrition. For example wasting has declined to 3.2% from 5.3 %; underweight to 17% from 33%. On the other hand stunting has declined to 47.8% from 53%. It is the first time globally that stunting has decreased by 7% within the shortest time. The other pleasing aspect is the reduction in mortality rate due to stunting. This has fallen to 2% from 20%.

Despite the tremendous progress in the nutrition interventions, stunting still remains a challenge and it is of great concern because it reduces the Gross Domestic Product annually by two to three percent. If Malawi eliminated stunting, the country’s GDP would have reached almost 400% higher than what has been achieved to date.

In order to address stunting, the government of Malawi and all stakeholders are committed to Scaling up Nutrition 1000 Special Days Movement using a Nutrition Education and Communication (NEC) Strategy under the theme ‘Unite to End Stunting’.

This launch is a stepping stone for Malawi’s progression towards elimination of stunting. The initiative is aimed at improving maternal nutrition before, during and after pregnancy. It also aims at improving Infant and Young Child Nutrition within the first two years of the child’s life to prevent stunting which happens within this period. The initiative will enhance increased awareness and appreciation of the maternal and infant nutritional status. I am therefore calling upon everyone gathered here and program implementers to develop SUN 1000 Special Days work plans. You must commit yourselves to the nutrition program activities. You also need to share information and knowledge on nutrition. There is a serious need to establish a consensus on the actions which address chronic malnutrition especially within the focus of 1000 Special Days.

I will personally ensure that the call His Excellency Professor Bingu wa Mutharika made as the African Union Chairperson that ‘No Child in Africa Should go to Bed Hungry, Die of Malnutrition or Starvation………… and that ‘We Halve Stunting by 2016’’ is realized in Malawi.

President wa Mutharika as Minister responsible for Nutrition, HIV & AIDS has personally committed himself to champion and take the lead in the fight against nutrition disorders. His Excellency’s commitment was matched with action through directing that Nutrition, HIV& AIDS should be under his office. I, as the Coordinator, am also committed to make sure that action is taken at all levels to ensure smooth implementation of the program. The Department of Nutrition, HIV & AIDS, headed by Principal Secretary Dr. Mary Shawa, was established in 2004 to provide visionary strategic policy direction, guidance, oversight and coordination on nutrition issues….and Dr Mary Shawa is doing a wonderful job.

I wish to share with the international delegates that the government of Malawi under the personal championship, leadership and stewardship of His Excellency Ngwazi Professor Bingu wa Mutharika and the department of Nutrition, HIV & AIDS as a technical authority are responsible for high level advocacy facilitation of institutional capacity development, resource mobilization, resource tracking and research for evidence based planning. Nutrition must therefore be declared a cross-cutting issue with economic, socio-cultural, political and biomedical dimensions which should be addressed in a multi-sectoral manner involving all stakeholders. Further, the government created a vote for nutrition services with budgetary allocations and has recruited and placed officers responsible for Nutrition, HIV & AIDS in ten key ministries. I wish to appeal to all ministries, organizations, institutions and stakeholders working in nutrition to join hands with His Excellency Ngwazi Professor Bingu wa Mutharika and his government in scaling up the 1000 Special Days Campaign.

The implementation of the SUN 1000 Special Days Movement will also be at district and community levels.

This is the more reason why all District Commissioners, District Executive Committees and local leaders are here to witness the launch.I am therefore calling upon all local leaders, Non-Governmental Organizations, communities, families and care givers to commit themselves to implement the initiative. Front-line workers are being charged to form new alliances with their service beneficiaries for the SUN 1000 Special Days Movement. I wish to thank Irish AID, UNICEF, USAID, World Food Program, FAO, Concern Worldwide and Catholic Relief Services for their continued support. I wish you to know that it is His Excellency’s expectation that you will continue to support Malawi and facilitate a creation of the much needed Integrated Nutrition Fund that will mature into a SWAP.

Pictorial Focus of Displays-Extracts

Seeing Displays:The First Lady Madam Callister Mutharika flanked by Dr. Mary Shawa, Principal Secretary for Nutrition and HIV&AIDS.