April 13-21, 2015

 

“For the poor shall never cease out of the land: therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy, in thy land.” — Deuteronomy 15:11

 

 

In addition, about twenty-three percent of all children under the age of five suffer from chronic malnutrition, putting Haiti’s future in jeopardy.

 

 

Love A Child is building a new Malnutrition Center to help fight this chronic problem.

 

This Malnutrition Clinic has been in a tent since the earthquake. The floor was falling in and it was overcrowded. We have served many Haitians, young and old, in this center.

 

The Malnutrition Clinic began here because of the poor health of mothers. The poor condition in which these mothers gave birth and the lack of medical care that often causes death during childbirth to the mother and/or the newborn child. If they survived childbirth they were unable to care for their newborns and the children were unlikely to survive to the age of five.

 

 Most of the children of these poor mothers also suffer from severe malnutrition.

 

 Malnutrition is the leading cause of death in children here in Haiti.

 

In Haiti we see both kinds of malnutrition ravaging young children and babies.
This is the face of Kwashiorkor malnutrition, which is a lack of protein in their diet.

 

These are the faces of Marasmus malnutrition, which is a severe lack of any kind of food.

 

Marasmus malnutrition occurs most often in children under the age of one. One-third of one-year-old children show signs of severe growth retardation. Malnutrition contributes to sixty percent of deaths in children.

 

As the need continues to grow for mothers to learn more about their health during pregnancy and their child’s health within the first five years of life, a new Malnutrition Center is essential for the survival of so many women and children in the remote areas of Haiti.

 

So now we are tearing down the Old Tent Clinic and we will be replacing it with a brand new building.

 

Pastor Mark Ostrander and our wonderful Haitian crew are building this new Malnutrition Center here at Love A Child.
We will be able to save hundreds of babies and little children.

 

A special thanks goes to one of our partners, Dor’e Aslandes, for sponsoring this project.

 

The new Malnutrition Center will continue to offer new mothers-to-be the education they need to have healthy babies.

 

All expectant mothers must attend educational classes that teach the importance of sanitary deliveries and good hygiene for their babies. This information is very simple, but most Haitian women do not understand the importance of these practices.

Prenatal care is encouraged with vitamins, and ultrasounds are offered to the expectant mothers so that the health of the infants can be monitored before the birth.

 

These educational classes help to prevent deaths from infection. Working with these mothers through both classes and one-on-one provides for better health and is a great time for the staff members to bond with the mothers. This bonding is important because it lets new mothers know that someone cares about them and gives them hope for the future. They leave our clinic striving to be better mothers.

 

At the end of the pregnancy before giving birth, each mother that has attended the program receives a birthing kit to help keep things clean during the birth.

You can help with this very important life-saving program by making up kits to send to Haiti. This is a great church project and would help to save the lives of many poor women and their babies in Fond Parisien and beyond.

Here are the items included in each Birthing Kit:

4 X 4 gauze
Tie cord
2″ X 12″ fabric for belly binder
Safety pin to secure belly binder
1 pair of gloves
Single edge razor
Kotex sanitary pads
Receiving blanket
Cloth diaper
One piece outfit for infant
Hat
Optional – cute gift package

 

Below is a photo of the items included in a Baby Kit.

Here are the items included in the Baby Kits:

Baby powder
Baby body wash
Baby shampoo
Baby lotion
Wash cloth

 

It is our goal to keep these two kits in stock at the clinic so we can give them out to expectant mothers. After the birth, babies are brought to the clinic each week to be weighed and checked for proper growth, etc.

 

 

The mothers are given a supply of food and formula to care for her family and the newborn for one week and then she comes back the next week for a check up and another supply of food and formula.

 

At these classes we also stress the importance of getting their babies enrolled in the vaccination program.

 

If a severely malnourished baby is found while conducting a mobile medical clinic, that mother is asked to take her baby to the Malnutrition Clinic for treatment.

 

 

 

A special thanks goes to one of our partners, Dor’e Aslandes, for sponsoring this new Malnutrition Clinic. We are also very thankful for our wonderful Medical Administrator, Barbara MacMannis, who runs the Jesus Healing Center and the Malnutrition Program!

We thank all of our partners for helping us share the love of Christ. We know it takes all of us partnering and working together to change a nation like Haiti. At this time, we are in desperate need of baby formula for these newborns. If you would like to contribute to this growing need, please send this formula to our Love Child Office in Florida at:

Love A Child
12411 Commerce Lakes Drive
Fort Myers, FL 33913

or call at 239-210-6107 and ask to speak to Shar.

God bless you ALL!
Sherry