Maternity Worldwide – Garden House supported event
Posted:6 September 2016
Our Garden House friends are into so many interesting and worthwhile projects Nicky Perry, and her involvement with the Brighton-based charity Maternity Worldwide, is one of them. We thought we’d ask Nicky to tell us a bit more about what she, and they, are up to – as we feel sure you’ll be interested! There’s also an invitation to a Champagne Afternoon Tea on Saturday 17 September to raise money for Nicky’s Malawi bike ride, held in the beautiful surroundings of The Garden House (more info bottom of page). Minimum donation £18.
Maternity Worldwide works in low-income countries to help women and girls access the high quality maternal health care they need to be able to give birth safely. They work in partnership with local healthcare providers, the local Government and other Non Government Organisations to ensure that services are not duplicated and fulfill an unmet need in a sustainable way.
Taking an integrated approach to maternal health, they:
- Provide communities with information on maternal and newborn health so they know the risks to look for and can seek medical help early
- Enable women to become financially independent by supporting and training them to set up their own small businesses, empowering them to become the decision makers about their own reproductive and sexual health and to become future leaders
- Improve access to health centres and hospitals
- Train local midwives, doctors and healthcare workers to enable them to provide safe births
- Where necessary, provide the equipment and resources needed and improve the referral service so hospitals and health centres can enable women to give birth safely
If services are available but communities are not empowered to access them, or if communities are empowered but there are no facilities there will be no impact. An Integrated Approach makes the biggest, sustainable difference to maternal health.
Nicky setting off from Brighton
Since it began in 2002, Maternity Worldwide has worked in 11 developing countries to save the lives of mothers and babies. They currently have 3 Integrated Maternal Health Programmes in Malawi, Uganda and Ethiopia.
Nicky says: “I got involved 8 years ago when I did my first charity bike ride in Ethiopia. During the ride we visited the hospital that we were raising the money for and I saw firsthand just where the money was going that people had been so generous to donate. Seeing just how far the money would go to make a real difference was just the motivation I needed! Since then I have cycled again in Ethiopia and Uganda, visiting the project. In Uganda we were raising money to build a clinic and 3 years later the clinic is built and will soon be open to patients. This year I am cycling 320km over 5 days in Malawi. I will visit the Maternity Worldwide projects and I will get to meet the people whose lives will be transformed by the sponsorship money I raise.”
If you would like to find out more and support Nicky’s fundraising efforts please come along to a Champagne Afternoon Tea on Saturday 17 September in the beautiful surroundings of The Garden House. Places are limited. For more information email Nicky on perry285@btinternet.com or phone her on 07785 991323.
