First Day in the Clinic

by Melinda Wilkins

Primera dia en la clinica…….2 births to some seriously strong and brave mamas, labored with 3 other mamas (ages 13, 15 and ?)just babies themselves……

Melinda is currently volunteering with Dar a Luz Honduras, she created a blog for her time here: http://hondurasdoula.wordpress.com/about/

Expanding the Project

by Emma Dorsey

Recently Silvia has been to the public hospital in Roatán where, she did a workshop with staff to raise conscientiousness about mother-friendly birth practices, doulas, and relaxation techniques. The hospital staff has been very open-minded and welcoming. Many nurses requested that she hold a second workshop, in order to reach all of the hospital staff. She also has been able to hold a class together with Melani Trofimow for doctors and many nursing students on methods for avoiding an episiotomy for laboring women.

The classes were such a success that she will also be teaching a Roatan nurse the skills she needs to provide childbirth education to women in the community. This small charlas will be complimented by large, monthly meetings that can be accessed by many women. She also has delivered education materials to the hospital for women in labor. With such a warm welcome and a solid foundation, we will soon place a volunteer in the hospital in Roatán, which sees about four births per day.

Thanks to Melani!

Melani Trofimow

Melani Trofimow arrived the mid of February. Melani is a midwife from Germany. In Germany midwives work in hospitals, in birth centers or assist childbirth at home. They also offer for example childbirth education, pre- and postnatal care, which is all covered by the German healthcare system.

She has spent 3 weeks in the hospital of La Ceiba, and will be working for a couple of days in the mother and child clinic nearby Copan, and also in the health care center of Siguatepeque. Melani also brought a lot of donations with her, as a baby model, a placenta model, a uterus model, a lot of baby cloth, blood pressure cuffs, stress balls and thermometers.

Melani is the director of the birth center in Marburg. She has 22 years experience as a midwife. Thank you so much for coming to Honduras and to support our work here! Thank you so much also for sharing your heart and for your wisdom!

“El Parto Humanizado”

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The big government runned hospital in La Ceiba sees 20 births a day.

We had a presentation about “el parto humanizado” (humanized birth), were we showed that the environment does have an effect on childbirth. Also we showed how to avoid episiotomy. To the presentation assisted a big group of labor and delivery nurses, medical interns and gynecologist.

We got a lot support from some of the gynecologists, medical interns showed their enthusiasm and interest with their questions.

For the following weeks Melanie got the permission to do hand on practice, she has been able to support a lot of women during childbirth and to show the interns and nurses mother friendly birth practices. A main focus has been to avoid episiotomy and to bond after birth the newborn  immediately with the mother.

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For the second time I went to Siguatepeque, this time with Melani Trofimow a midwife from Germany. The main healthcare center there sees about 5 births a day. We donated educational materials and a birth ball. Melanie assisted a birth, and demonstrated the doctor how to prevent episiotomy. Next week Melani will return to give a presentation and a training program on how to avoid episiotomy to the medical staff there.

Further we are looking forward

Thank you so much Maria!

Maria Luise Hansen with Xiomara Lobo.
Xiomara Lobo gave her permission to publish this picture.

Baby Cloth from Denmark

Since the beginning of  January Maria Luise Hansen from Denmark provided with Dar a Luz Honduras wonderful doula support to women during childbirth in the government runned hospital of la Ceiba. Maria is on her way to become a midwife. She also helped with presentations and with office work. Further she organized baby cloth donations from Denmark. Thank you so much for everything Maria, thank you so much for being here and for sharing your great heart with us and with a lot of women during childbirth!

Visit from Canada

By Maria Louise Hansen

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We are so happy to tell you that donations from Canada have arrived. Daniela Toman, nurse in Toronto has made a difference by bringing educational materials, blood pressure cuffs, a birth ball and even a projector, which is highly appreciated. It means a lot for the woman to get a simple anatomic birth explanation of what exactly is going on with their body during pregnancy and birth, and the pictures and figures helps them to understand. In addition the projector we received came in the right moment for our several different presentations we are planning to do. The projector was donated from Daniela herself.

Daniela went to the hospitals in Toronto asking for birth materials they don’t use anymore. It came to be a lot of things, which will be used by volunteers all around Honduras in hogares marternos, healthcare centers and hospitals.  A little help – big steps forward!