Ep 5. Saving Haiti's Mothers

In season 6 episode 5 of NOW on PBS, titled "Saving Haiti's Mothers," viewers are taken on a journey to learn about and understand the maternal healthcare crisis that is occurring in Haiti.

The episode begins by setting the scene for viewers. Haiti's healthcare system is severely under resourced, with only one single doctor per 10,000 people, and less than half of the population having access to basic healthcare. This chronic lack of resources is compounded by the fact that Haiti is one of the most dangerous places to give birth in the world, with maternal mortality rates ten times higher than those in the United States.

The focus of the episode is a hospital in Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti, that is making efforts to fight against this crisis. The hospital, called St. Damien, is run by an Italian nonprofit organization called the NPH (Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos) Haiti. In the episode, viewers hear from various staff members, including doctors and nurses, who share their experiences of working in extreme conditions with limited resources to try and save the lives of new mothers and their babies.

One of the key themes explored in the episode is the challenge of ensuring that women have access to healthcare before, during and after childbirth. In Haiti, many women attend traditional birth attendants rather than seeking medical care, making it difficult for medical professionals to prevent and treat complications. St. Damien is trying to combat this by setting up a network of community health workers that can visit pregnant women, educate them on the risks of giving birth, and encourage them to come to the hospital when they go into labor. The program is working well, but it is just a tiny drop in the ocean of need.

Another challenge explored in the episode is the lack of resources and equipment available to medical professionals working in Haiti. In the episode, viewers hear from doctors who work at St. Damien who reveal that they often have to perform life-saving procedures with basic tools, such as using a bicycle pump to oxygenate a patient's blood. The hospital also faces shortages of basic supplies like gauze and antibiotics. The hardships and resourcefulness of these doctors and nurses in the face of these incredible difficulties is truly awe-inspiring.

Despite the many challenges, the episode shows how St. Damien is making a real impact in the lives of Haitian women. The hospital has managed to reduce the number of mothers and newborns dying during childbirth by more than half in just a few short years, a testament to the dedication, skill and perseverance of the staff members. Footage in the episode shows mothers who have given birth at St. Damien, as they tell their stories and share how grateful they are to have received the care they needed.

Throughout the episode, viewers also learn about the broader political and social factors that have contributed to Haiti's healthcare crisis. The program reveals, for example the role that foreign aid has played in substituting for local healthcare providers, with stories of well-funded foreign aid agencies taking over clinical care to the disadvantage of local healthcare providers.

Overall, Saving Haiti's Mothers is an eye-opening and enlightening episode that reveals both the heart-breaking realities of Haiti's maternal healthcare crisis, but also the incredible work being done by the dedicated professionals fighting to save lives. The program will likely leave viewers feeling inspired and motivated to contribute what they can to the fight for better healthcare access for all.