Suakoko, Bong County – Running the CB Dunbar Maternal Hospital in Gbarnga Bong County as the Medical officer, is no problem for Dr. Obed Dolo, but catering to 67,000 plus as the only Doctor, is easily an alarming dilemma.
Dr. Dolo fears that if nothing is done to alleviate the problem, he could soon break down.
“The hospital caters to the entire Bong and neighbouring counties and we also receive people from Guinea as well, he says.
“So being the only doctor on shift is very straining on me and will break me down soon. This hospital does over 200 deliveries every month and it is not possible for only one doctor to work here; so I need doctors urgently or like right now,” Says Dr. Dolo
Speaking at the Bong County Health Team quarterly meeting held on Phebe Medical compound in Suakoko, Dr. Dolo disclosed that working at the only maternal hospital in the region comes with complications especially for pregnant women who do home deliveries with the help of Traditional midwives (TM) or Traditional Birth Attendants (TBA).
“Within the course of three months; we managed 107 serious complications that had to do with post -pattern haemorrhage, anti-pattern Haemorrhage and other complications, which is a huge number for a medical facility,” Says Dr. Dolo
Bad roads not helping situation
Liberia has the world’s third-highest maternal mortality and new-born rate; and health clinics and hospitals are few and far between. On average, the World Health Organization, (WHO) reported in 2010, that Liberia has only three nurses or midwives and less than one doctor for every 10,000 people. Bad roads also make it difficult for most of the people to access what medical resources that are there.
Most rural villages and towns rely on traditional birth attendants who practice home deliveries, some with habits handed down from their mothers and grandmothers.
“Home deliveries are very prevalent in this part of Liberia, the women would come for antenatal care at the hospital, but once it is time for delivery, they rather go the Traditional Midwives, (TM) or Traditional Birth Attendants (TBA) to do home deliveries.
Despite our educational outreach of bringing pregnant to the hospital in time of crisis, these midwives would not listen but will only bring the patient when there is a complication that they cannot handle.”
During the meeting, Officers -in-charge (OIC) of other rural towns and villages, highlighted challenges and difficulties they face at their various clinics, including maternal issues and traditional beliefs still practiced by Traditional midwives during deliveries.
But when a participant stood up and said Bong County no longer practice the ancient beliefs of forcing women to confess of extra marital affairs, whenever there is a complication during delivery, other participants in the hall start murmuring in disagreement.
One of such person with a different view, was Dr. Dolo, who explains that there are many traditional practices in and around Bong County but falls short of saying that some midwives do not force women to deliver, because he had seen evidence of bruises on patients he had treated.
Adds Dr. Dolo: “I have seen patients with bruises all over them and they tell me either they were beaten by midwives or a midwife sat on their adornment and force them to deliver.
I have seen young girls come to the hospital and are physically battered but afraid of women who would accompany them, and when we try to get information from them, they would not speak until those women who accompany leave the room,” he said.
As to whether the patients who go through the bitter experience of being beaten by midwives are normally traumatized and frightened, Dr. Dolo replied in the affirmative.
“I would say yes because, the pregnant women who go through these brutal experiences are usually traumatized.
They are already in labour pain and beaten by someone who they thought would bring relief to their pains. We need to continuously engage the community and seek health care when they are in need and not try other means and come to the hospital when it is the last result, because these patients come with complications that at times make it difficult to revive them and they end up dying.”
Dr. Dolo said only three small generators are used by the hospital and they are more than four years old and have outlived their usefulness.
Deliveries by Candle Light
“I met those generators at the hospital when I started working there nearly three years ago and we keep getting breakdown and we keep repairing them; that they can no longer be repaired again.
Part of the hospital is in darkness, that at times, we have to do deliveries by candle light or flashlight. Incentives for staff are slow coming and we have drug deficiency.
“So, I am asking my boss and County Health Officer Dr. Logan, to please address some of our problems mainly, the issue of getting another doctor to help me.”
Bong County Health Officer Dr. G. Gorbee Logan said, he will advocate for CB Dunbar Hospital to get a bigger generator soon, which will supply the entire hospital.
“If I say we do not have enough Doctors here in Liberia, I will be lying to you, but many of them are not willing to take assignment in rural Liberia.
They would rather stay in Monrovia, where they can be able to work at three or more hospitals and clinics and get more money, instead of coming to rural Liberia because they say the salary is small.
S, I will take the message back to my bosses at the Ministry of Health and see how best we can do something about this matter because we do not want to see Dr. Dolo breaking down anytime soon.”
Mae Azango [email protected]