Friday, December 2, 2011

 Child Health Week: one week of efforts so all children can live in health

The health and education sectors of the Port-à-Piment Millennium Village Project (MVP) recently organized a series of activities for Child Health Week. Though the event is usually celebrated at a national level by the Ministry of Health, this year only the communities of the Port-à-Piment watershed were able to coordinate and celebrate Child Health Week, thanks to a strong collaboration between the various partners of the MVP, including UNOPS, Catholic Relief Services, the Ministry of Public Health (MSPP), the Mayor of Port-à-Piment, the National Police of Haiti, community organizations, church representatives and managers of educational institutions.

The health and education sector teams had multiple objectives in the initiatives planned for Child Health Week. As the week marked the official launch of the activities of the health and education teams of the MVP, one of the priorities was to inform the general population of Port-à-Piment about the MVP and the planned activities in health and education. The focus of the week was the promotion of children’s health: to strengthen the rates of vaccination and deworming of children under 5, to improve the rates of tetanus vaccination among women over 15 on at the level of school facilities, to strengthen the coverage of Vitamin A supplementation in children, and to support the promotion of primary health services for children.

Child Health Week activities took place primarily in two communes of the watershed: Port-à-Piment and Rendel. In these two communities, one along the coastal plain and the other at a higher inland elevation. The MVP team met with community organizations, staff of health facilities, and key community figures regarding the planning and implementation of Child Health Week.

On Sunday, November 28, a large parade for Child Health Week brought together delegations of students and teachers, directors of educational institutions and community organizations, and the staff of the  hospital in Port-à-Piment and the health center in Rendel. The Baptist church of Port-à-Piment contributed their podium and communication equipment to the event, who planned a presentation for the community at the end of the march route in the central plaza of Port-à-Piment.

The key messages of Child Health Week focused on ways to keep children healthy, from daily activities to preventative measures. Lessons included nutritional information, such as the benefits of breastfeeding and three vital nutrient groups (carbohydrates, protein and fats). Hygiene, including hand washing with soap and water, was a emphasized as a cruicial part of daily health for children and adults alike. Linked to hygiene were discussions on preventing avoidable diseases which arise from poor sanitation conditions, from diarrhea to cholera; the MVP team and partners also presented on how to prepare oral rehydration salts at home. The importance of immunizations for communicable diseases was also a key message for Child Health Week; during the week, the MVP teams provided immunizations in 13 schools in Port-à-Piment and 10 schools in Rendel. Teams also distributed Vitamin A and deworming drugs.

Another campaign to promote child health similar to Child Health Week is planned for June 2012. With the strong connections to local communities, the network of community health workers, and the robust, collaborative partnership of the MVP, the Education and Health Sector teams will aim to reach more communities and extend child health promotion efforts to Paricot and Balai, other communal sections in the watershed.

The start of the MVP programs in health and education through its activities for Child Health Week was extremely well received and promises an excellent future of community collaboration.

More images of Child Health Week and the activities of the MVP team will be included in an upcoming Child Health Week gallery.

Dr. Lino Georges is the Health Sector lead for the Port-à-Piment Millennium Village. He applauds the effort of the MVP team for making Child Health Week possible, particularly Fonie Pierre, Jean Rouchon, Nelie Jeantillon, and Jacqueline Fabius.