September 2021 - Health Bridges International

Neonatal Resuscitation Training: A Chance at Life for Every Newborn

September 29, 2021/1 Comment/in Blog, Impact Stories /by Wayne Centrone

Training health professionals in neonatal resuscitation continues to help save newborn lives in Perú. We share the success story of one nurse and HBI’s journey to support health professionals like her:

It was November 2019 when Lic. Catherine Tejada Aguirre was in Pasco, holding a newborn in her arms. The baby was in a poor state, with an Apgar score* of only 4 out of 10. Baby Luz* had a limp body with a bluish appearance, a low pulse rate, and barely any response to simulation. Her situation is similar to 10% of babies born in homes and health centers across the country.

While progress has been made and neonatal mortality rate in Perú has fallen from 16 deaths per 1,000 live births (2000) to only 6 (2019), the rate in rural and underserved regions still lag behind. In these areas — home to almost half the country’s entire population — around 75% of women give birth at home alone or in small clinics with only a single healthcare professional because they do not have the same access to health services as those in urban areas.

What a gift – Wayne Centrone

September 28, 2021/0 Comments/in Blog /by Wayne Centrone

Being back with our team and visiting with the staff and boys at the Casa Girasoles – this whole experience is a huge gift. Today we took the boys for a 4 hour hike. It was hard. They did awesome.

This afternoon we continued our discussion with the program directors. We’ve been meeting in a sort of “re-set” manner and talking about our work, changes that may be coming in child-welfare in Perú, and how we can continue to support one another in this work.

Check out a few photos from our hike and activities at the Casa Girasoles. Thanks for all the ongoing support.

Back in Perú – Wayne Centrone

September 25, 2021/0 Comments/in Blog /by Wayne Centrone

The Girasoles Cycling Team out for a training ride.

I am back in Lima. I arrived late last night.

In all my years of travel in the many trips I’ve taken to-and-from Perú, the excitement and energy I feel when I arrive are the same. I am giddy. Perhaps even more so – given the months of uncertainty and travel restrictions in the face of the pandemic.

We have a busy trip planned. We will be traveling to the Casa Girasoles in Urubamba and Ica – and make a brief visit to Arequipa for a day of meetings.

Who said this is supposed to be easy? Wayne Centrone

September 17, 2021/1 Comment/in Blog /by Wayne Centrone

The kitchen in the home where Gabriela lives.

Who said this work is supposed to be easy? There is nothing easy about working with communities, local change agents, and on-the-ground providers to build the pathways to the futures they desire . . . and deserve. There is nothing easy – but it is so vital.

This work, walking alongside local leaders – it’s hard. The “success” stories are far fewer than the challenges. NGOs have a way of making it seem like everything always works out. Visit a website, and you are dazzled by the numbers – thousands of lives impacted, thousands of hours invested, and hundreds of thousands of dollars provided. Every story seems to end with a happy outcome. Many websites don’t disclose the challenging outcomes that contrast to the pretty picture-perfect results of our work.

Where do we go from here? Wayne Centrone

September 9, 2021/0 Comments/in Blog /by Wayne Centrone

The boys at the Casa Girasoles playing along the Rio Urubamba on a warm spring afternoon.

It has been over a month since the new presidential administration took office in Perú; and the response to the COVID pandemic by the government remains strong.

More and more age-groups are eligible for vaccination and larger geographic segments of the population are receiving their first doses. Projections by the Ministry of Health indicate all eligible citizens will receive their first dose by the end of 2021. This is great news. However, a number of questions remain – will the current vaccine formulations confer immune coverage in response to the rapidly changing variants (NB: Perú is predominately administering the Sinopharm BBIBP-CorV vaccine formulation – which study data indicates has a <51% efficacy rate)? Will a booster vaccine be required to match the evolving viral complexity? And if such, how will Perú secure the millions of additional doses needed to “immune boost” thousands of rural and underserved communities?

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