24 Reasons to be Thankful for HBI: Day 16 - Collaborations

I’m thankful for all the HBI donors who make possible our work in Perú.  A couple weeks ago, I received a note from Luisa Peña Lopez, a professional midwife in the state of Tumbes, near the Ecuador border and she shared a story of a birth she attended in the tiny health post of Uña del Gato the evening of April 29th.  A 17 year old who lacked any prenatal care presented to the health post, almost ready to deliver her baby, too late to be transferred, and the only ones in attendance were two very inexperienced midwives doing their year of required government service.  Luisa rushed to the health post, arriving just before a limp, non-breathing, premature baby was delivered.  Though the baby didn’t respond to the basic first steps of resuscitation, Luisa was able to ventilate the baby’s lungs by bag and mask until the child finally began to breathe spontaneously.  They were able to stabilize the premature baby and transfer her by ambulance to the regional hospital.  

​Three weeks later, Luisa had the opportunity to see the newborn and the very grateful new mother, both doing well.  Luisa is one of three newborn resuscitation trainers in the Tumbes region and she attributes this marvelous success to the skill set that she learned through HBI’s collaborative training program with the National College of Midwives of Perú.  I say thanks to all of you.

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