Celebrating Baby Sia and Mama Zainab

Tuesday March 8 was international women’s day! It’s a big deal in Tanzania. Dorothy in our office received a HUGE fragrant bouquet of lilies and roses and carnations from her husband- personally delivered! The ladies of our office got together for a small photo shoot to commemorate the day.

Later that morning I heard some news from our receptionist Irene (petite little thing in the black dress in the picture) that had me thinking about a particular woman on International Women’s Day.

On Tuesday, March 1st, 2011, Irene’s young dada (her maid) came to her room in the early morning hours in severe pain- she was in labor and had probably been in labor since the night before but hadn’t wanted to bother Irene (Irene did know that she was pregnant). Irene got up and took her to the closest public hospital where Zainab was admitted around 7 a.m. and delivered a six pound baby girl, Sia, around 10 a.m. At 1:00 p.m., Irene was getting a call at the office that Zainab was ready to be picked up. Beds are at such a premium at this hospital that women can’t stay unless there are major complications. From Zainab’s own calculations, her baby was a month early. Papa lived in her home village up north in Tanga region of Tanzania. Irene was happy that she could help Zainab out a bit by paying for the delivery, as Zainab was so supportive and helpful when Irene’s son, Abdou, was born (with club feet). Abdou’s feet had to be broken and reset. Zainab was a godsend to Irene then; this was the least that Irene could do for her. Afterall, Zainab’s home village was an EIGHT hour walk from the nearest town (where the last bus would have dropped her).

On Tuesday, Irene told me that Baby Sia passed away on Friday. Only four days old. Apparently she was jaundiced and spiked a fever on Friday. Zainab took her back to the same hospital on Friday afternoon at around 3. Baby Sia wasn’t seen until 6 p.m. at which time the doctors said it was too late. Told them “look at all these other women here that we have to see. We can’t save this baby and we have to tend to the others.” Heartbreaking. Zainab is probably in her early 20’s- far away from home and had now just lost her first baby. Makes me tear up even recalling the story. They buried baby Sia on Sunday, and little 7 year-old Abdou keeps asking Irene, “why did we put baby Sia down there? Can’t we bring her back?”

Heartwrenching. Who knows what Baby Sia died of exactly? Perhaps with better pre and post-natal care Baby Sia would have survived? Mama Zainab doesn’t have the option of seeing a therapist and dealing with her grief. She was going to go home to her family but needed the bus fare. I gave Irene 30,000 TSh ($25) to give to Zainab. Was the very least I could do- and so very much wished that I could do more.

So while we were enjoying the lovely fragrant flowers in our office celebrating women, we were all also thinking about Sia and Zainab and about all the mamas and babies in Tanzania and around the world, for whom childbirth is incredibly dangerous, scary, and unfortunately an extremely frequent cause of the end of so many young women’s lives.

A few links for you:

International Women's Day:
http://www.internationalwomensday.com/default.asp

Nicholas Kristof's book/movement for women "Half the Sky":
http://www.halftheskymovement.org/

Jill Sheffield's amazing advocacy organization "Women Deliver"
www.womendeliver.org

From Huffington Post and Global Health Council's CEO:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeffrey-l-sturchio/the-best-investment-in-gl_b_831575.html