HEALTH

High child mortality is an extensive problem in developing countries. The poor health care systems and limited knowledge and resources in the local communities restrict the populations’ possibilities to make decisions for a healthy life and act accordingly. This causes that many children die from preventable and treatable diseases such as diarrhoea, malaria and pneumonia.

BØRNEfonden deals with these challenges on a local level. We have divided our health programme into three components: “Healthy children, families and local community”, “Local ownership and increased demands for health care services” and “Efficient health structures”.

Healthy children, families and local community

• We work to improve mothers’ health. Through information we try to make mothers and pregnant women participate in meetings about health and regularly examinations during pregnancy. Further we provide training and resources for health clinics.
• We follow children's healthy growth. With the so-called ‘Nutritional follow-up’ on children, they get weighed and examined regularly, while mothers learn about child health and proper nutrition.
• We focus on sexual and reproductive health for youth and families through information and access to prevention of HIV/AIDS and unwanted pregnancies.
• We support the construction of wells and latrines, which will provide better access to clean drinking water, hygiene and sanitation.
• We support increased immunization coverage.

Local ownership and increased demands for health care services

• We inform about rights to health, and how to access health services.
  
• We enhance the local health clinics with a mutual sharing system similar to insurance systems: A family pays a moderate annually amount to a locally managed health insurance, and when they get ill, they will get a large part of the expenses for consultations and treatments reimbursed.

Efficient health care systems

• We support capacity building of health clinics. Through technical trainings for health agents or training in micro management for local health committees we work to enhance the health authorities’ planning and prioritization of the often limited resources.
• We support construction and renovation of health clinic buildings.
  
• We provide up-to-date materials and instruments.

HEALTH SESSIONS. At our health sessions, the mothers are, among other topics, taught how they can prevent and treat malaria.