Brazil Slashes Child Mortality Rates With Breastfeeding, Milk Banks

The Milk Bank Nigeria provides donor breast milk for sick, low birth weight and premature babies in neonatal ICUs across the country to reduce mortality in preterm babies. The Milk Bank Nigeria launched in August 2022 and as of Decemeber the organization had registered four donors who had supplied 33 liters of breast milk.

mDoc's Garden in a Box initiative distributes biodegradable seed kits to pregnant women identified through nutritional screening as having critical dietary gaps. The women are enrolled through a structured coaching and referral system in primary healthcare facilities and community outreach points, and receive ongoing support via a digital health platform. More than 300 women have been referred to the initiative and 96% collected a seed box.

The Save the Child Initiative, in collaboration with the Society for Women Development and Empowerment in Nigeria, is working to ensure that expectant mothers receive proper nutrition during pregnancy so they can deliver healthy babies. The initiative provides iron and folic acid supplements, nutrition counseling, hosts antenatal clinics, and even travels door-to-door to provide education and care to those in need.

The human milk bank at St. Francis Hospital opened in 2021 and is the first of its kind in the country. About eight mothers donate breast milk to the bank each day, which is then used to provide the necessary nutrients for the health and development of pre-term babies and those fighting illnesses.

FHI360 is an initiative, supported by grassroots and international partnerships, providing healthcare to Internally Displaced Peoples in four locations. The nourishment of pregnant and lactating mothers, as well as their children, is a main focus. The group disseminates information and provides nutrition counseling in both one-on-one and community support group settings. They also offer vitamins and micronutrient supplements to women and children and create safe breastfeeding spaces and safe spaces for women who have been victims of gender-based violence.

Operated by The Neo Child Initiative, the ReachOut Project provides nutrional counseling and screening to parents and their children in underserved communities, free of charge. Since 2015, the ReachOut Project has supported 20,000 people across 10 communities in the state.

Accredited social health activists (ASHA) travel throughout Indian villages to combat medical misinformation — specifically among pregnant people — and make public healthcare more accessible. ASHAs connects with over 60% of the women in the villages she serves via WhatsApp, sharing educational videos to avoid the harmful effects of misinformation. As a result, ASHAs have had a massive impact on maternal mortality rates. In 2006, the maternal mortality rate was 254 deaths per 100,000 live births, but in 2020 it dropped to 96 per 100,000 births.

The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative provides a 10-step approach to hospital-based breastfeeding support in an effort to increase breastfeeding rates and reduce the racial disparities Black women often face during breastfeeding initiation. Breastfeeding has been shown to have a significant impact on a baby and mother’s health outcomes and the breastfeeding medicine clinic is available to anyone who is interested, including Medicaid patients who wouldn’t be able to afford the services otherwise.

Women who faced difficulty getting to the nearest hospital when they were in labor, organized to raise money to buy a car that could be used as an emergency vehicle. Although having the car has helped significantly with accessing the hospital, it's not a fail-proof system and can be costly for the community to maintain. The state government was impressed with the scheme, however, and has launched an initiative that helps provide financial incentives to drivers for the program.

In Nigeria, many women who develop fistulas don't seek help due to lack of access to quality health care in the region, but Sisters of Medical Missionaries of Mary have opened a free clinic to help fill the gap. The clinic not only provides necessary medical procedures but also conducts regular community outreach campaigns to identify women who may be suffering and educate others how to identify and prevent the condition.