Louisville medical nonprofit partners with an African government to help save mother’s lives
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LOUISVILLE, Kentucky (WLKY) — Maternal mortality is a devastating crisis affecting mothers and babies in the United States and around the world.
To save lives in Africa, a government official partnered with a Louisville medical nonprofit.
SOS International’s efforts, locally and globally, are producing lifesaving results. Their most recent trip to Ghana reduced maternal mortality there by 24% in nine months.
According to SOS, 800 women die every day from childbirth — 95% in developing countries like Ghana — due to lack of medical care.
Last year, SOS sent supplies and equipment, including the first infant warmer ever.
The nonprofit also established a clinic that transformed into a hospital in rural parts of the country. It reduced an access barrier while also helping women and their babies live.
“What we do in a moment lasts a lifetime,” Denise Sears, president and CEO of SOS, said.
Because of the nonprofit’s work, no pregnant patients died last year in that area of Ghana where SOS implemented its efforts, which was a historic improvement, according to a member of parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa.
“The reality is that so many people have been saved and don’t even know how come. They don’t know that it’s people working here at SOS, people sorting medical equipment, shipping them, saving their lives,” he said.
He traveled to Louisville not only to thank Sears but also to make community connections to further meet the needs in his country, knowing that health is fundamental for any success.
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