Meeting healthcare needs in rural Laos

Until 2012, there was only one hospital in the Nonghet District of Laos. While it was easily accessible for most community members, it lacked adequate medical equipment and was poorly staffed. Many expectant mothers, like Lor (pictured above), did not trust the hospital`s services and preferred to give birth at home.

This all changed when ChildFund Laos started working in Nonghet four years ago. With the support of the Australian Government, ChildFund undertook extensive renovations of the local hospital buildings and also provided essential medical equipment, including a new steriliser and an incubator.

With funding support from the Australian Government and the Give A Little Love Foundation, ChildFund also constructed a new Mother and Child Hospital in Nonghet, which opened in July 2014. The hospital is equipped with four doctors and five female nurses, who provide prenatal and antenatal services. Lor was one of the first mothers to give birth at the newly built hospital.

“I had my first four children at home, with my mother-in-law and older women from the village assisting. During my home births, I sat on a wooden chair or a bed and after the delivery I would have a strong backache. At home, there is no specific equipment for delivery,” Lor explains.

“When I had my fifth child I wasn’t afraid, but since it was eight years since the last one, I decided to have antenatal care at the district hospital,” she says.