{"id":60519,"date":"2023-10-03T10:42:32","date_gmt":"2023-10-03T14:42:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.psi.org\/?p=60519"},"modified":"2024-07-22T11:13:39","modified_gmt":"2024-07-22T15:13:39","slug":"local-champions-spearhead-malaria-in-pregnancy-initiatives","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.psi.org\/pt\/2023\/10\/local-champions-spearhead-malaria-in-pregnancy-initiatives\/","title":{"rendered":"Local Champions Spearhead Malaria in Pregnancy Initiatives"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This piece originally ran on impactmalaria.org<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the\u00a0Malawian\u00a0village of\u00a0Mkanda,\u00a0Mchinji\u00a0District,\u00a0Melinda\u00a0Katukula\u00a0Banda\u00a0prepares\u00a0to begin\u00a0her day\u00a0and greet\u00a0the\u00a0soon-to-be mothers\u00a0she\u00a0is dedicated to keeping healthy.\u00a0Affectionately dubbed\u00a0Gogo\u00a0Chalo\u00a0by her community, Melinda is\u00a0a\u00a0community leader in her village,\u00a0providing\u00a0lifesaving malaria services and serving\u00a0as\u00a0a\u00a0trusted\u00a0source of guidance and wisdom\u00a0among her neighbors.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Melinda\u00a0Katukula\u00a0Banda, a\u00a0community leader\u00a0in the\u00a0Mchinji\u00a0District. Photo credit: Christabel\u00a0Komakoma, PMI Impact Malaria in Malawi\u00a0<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Malawi is classified as a high\u00a0malaria\u00a0burden country, with children younger than five-years-old and pregnant mothers facing the brunt of malaria\u00a0disease. Women are\u00a0especially\u00a0vulnerable to malaria infection during pregnancy,\u00a0which poses\u00a0numerous\u00a0risks to their unborn children. Accessing antimalarial medicine and insecticidal nets through antenatal care (ANC)\u00a0as early as possible in pregnancy\u00a0is\u00a0an\u00a0effective\u00a0means\u00a0to prevent malaria-related complications\u00a0for expectant mothers\u00a0and their unborn babies.\u00a0Expanding awareness of\u00a0ANC and\u00a0encouraging communities to proactively seek antenatal care early and consistently\u00a0is paramount. The National Malaria Control Program (NMCP) has therefore\u00a0underscored\u00a0community engagement in their national strategic plan\u2014empowering local leadership to protect their communities from malaria in pregnancy (MIP).\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having noticed\u00a0the\u00a0alarming\u00a0burden of malaria\u00a0on pregnant women\u00a0in her\u00a0village,\u00a0Melinda\u00a0joined\u00a0over 200\u00a0community leaders\u00a0from\u00a0three Malawian districts\u2014Kasungu,\u00a0Mchinji, and\u00a0Nkhatabay\u2014in a\u00a0community engagement training\u00a0program\u00a0supported by PMI Impact Malaria,\u00a0the flagship malaria service delivery project of the U.S. President\u2019s Malaria\u00a0Initiative (PMI).\u00a0Through these sessions,\u00a0community leaders\u00a0were trained\u00a0to dispel disinformation\u00a0and\u00a0empower\u00a0pregnant women\u00a0to\u00a0take ownership\u00a0over\u00a0their health.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Melinda experienced firsthand the devastation wrought by malaria\u2014she herself lost a five-month pregnancy, and nearly lost her only daughter to the disease. She is also familiar with the local cultural belief that disclosing pregnancy at an early stage is taboo, which means that pregnant women may be reluctant to seek essential healthcare when it matters most. Melinda realized the opportunity to help prospective mothers in her village seek essential preventive care, and enrolled in the community engagement training, where she learned how to lead community dialogues about ANC through responsive coaching and mentorship.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

During\u00a0these training sessions, community leaders developed action plans to encourage ANC visits\u00a0within\u00a0their communities. Melinda shared that she\u00a0aims\u00a0to\u00a0work alongside\u00a0other elders in her village\u00a0to\u00a0follow-up with\u00a0possible\u00a0pregnancies\u00a0and ensure that\u00a0all pregnant women\u00a0access ANC.\u00a0\u201cI am returning home enriched with knowledge and shared experiences from my fellow senior chiefs,\u201d Melinda reflected on her training experience. \u201cI am determined to ensure that no pregnant woman in my community endures the hardships of malaria-related complications any longer,\u201d she added.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Melinda\u00a0Katukula\u00a0Banda (second from right) attends\u00a0a malaria-in-pregnancy training session alongside community leaders from\u00a0Malawi\u2019s Kasungu,\u00a0Mchinji, and\u00a0Nkhatabay\u00a0districts.\u00a0Photo credit: Christabel Komakoma, PMI Impact Malaria in Malawi<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Melinda shared that her newfound malaria knowledge and strategies for supporting malaria in pregnancy care have empowered her to leverage her status as a community leader. She hopes to provide a safe and welcoming environment for pregnant women to seek guidance about available malaria services and address their concerns. By sharing positive ANC messaging in her community, and directing pregnant women to malaria service providers, Melinda reinforces her commitment to supporting the expansion of malaria diagnosis and treatment services to hard-to-reach communities\u2014so that all mothers can assume an active role in their healthcare. \u201cI now stand as a champion and will lead efforts to encourage early antenatal care to protect [pregnant mothers] from malaria,\u201d she said.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

PMI Impact Malaria supports NMCPs to strengthen MIP interventions in Malawi and 8 other malaria-endemic countries (Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Mali, Niger, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, and Tanzania) by conducting training programs and generating demand for these services through community leaders like Melinda. Interactive community engagement and more awareness of the dangers of malaria in pregnancy can increase the percentage of pregnant mothers receiving high quality malaria services through ANC. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

PMI Impact Malaria is funded and technically\u00a0assisted\u00a0by the U.S. President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) and is led by\u00a0Population Services International (PSI)<\/a>\u00a0in partnership with\u00a0Jhpiego<\/a>,\u00a0MCD Global Health<\/a>, and the Malaria Elimination Institute (MEI) at the\u00a0University of California San Francisco<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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