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The Nithulemada Child and Mother Care Clinic

    Ruth Stafford Peale, the American writer once said, ‘Find a need and fill it’. These words expressed were an inspiration towards developing my Personal Project (An Independent research project that a student produces in the 10th grade). This assignment was a lifetime experience that was able to indicate the self-growth and a personal maturation of myself. I carefully contemplated the subject that I would choose in order to display my independent research, ample creativity and thorough demonstration of skills in the Approaches to Learning. I had distinctively decided on focusing my Personal Project on the substantial Area of Interaction, known as Community and Service.

 

    The 30-year civil conflict left the country with various difficulties in economy, education and principally health. The fact that a small number of our population didn’t even receive the minimum treatment they required disturbed me, resulting in deciding to educate myself into generating a change in Sri Lanka that focused on developed medical care.

Goal Achieved!

I was able to achieve my goal and was extremely pleased with the outcome. The reason being, that I was able to re-open the clinic and provide them with the medical equipment they required plus the proper medical guidance in the form of a qualified doctor and a midwife.

 

The clinic opened on Wednesday October 19th, 2011 and is still a successfully running medcial facility. The clinic has already conducted marvellous medical programs and these events can be viewed on this site.

The Goal of the Project:

The goal of my Personal Project was to reopen a closed down medical center in the Theldiniya province, Digana, Sri Lanka; and to expand the clinic with suitable services that consist of educational campaigns for the community. Principal attention should be focused towards pregnant women and children, resulting in establishing the idea of advancing the center into a permanent clinic that is formatted by a doctor and the appropriate medication. My key focus area being expectant mothers and children; resulting in the idea of establishing the center into a permanent pre-natal clinic as well as an early childhood learning center, which is formatted by a doctor and the appropriate medication. The opening of the clinic addressed my ‘Area of Interaction’ through the means of providing a health service to a vast community in an undeveloped village; and a sense of assurance that immediate supervision and caution will be granted towards each villager.Constructing this goal was a simple task due to the fact that being a woman; I understood the challenges and difficulties mothers would have to go through during the months leading to childbirth. Living in an under developed village, I felt that these expecting mothers as well as the unborn babies are in great danger and the lack of proper facilities needed to be highlighted to the outside community immediately.

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Information about the Nithulemada Village:

 

  • The village consists of approximately 200 families with 1100 in population.

  • These families are mainly of low income and of multi ethnicity.

    • Consisting of approximately 35-45 pregnant mothers

    • Husbands working in dairies and on the golf course

    • Over 300 children; attending public schools around the village

  • The diseases surrounding the clinic

    • Dengue, Malaria, Cholera, Diarrhea, Viral Flues

  • There is a maternity clinic in the adjoining village called Senerathwella, which is about 5 km away from the clinic.

Specifications:

I contacted the Ministry of Health of the Central Province and built a close relationship with the Honorable Minister, Sunil Amarathunga. With his assistance, I was able to catalog the different specifications for the clinic. The specifications are as follow:

 

  • Clinic to be established as a pre-natal and postnatal clinic and a childcare center.

  • Clinic to be held in a functioning building in the Nithulemada village

    • The building will be clean and sanitized – Health of Patients

    • The building will have at least two rooms; a room for investigation and another for storage – Space are for patients

    • Building will have clean, sanitized toilets – Sanitation health for patients

    • Building will be furnished with sufficient number of benches, tables and chairs in specific areas – Comfortable environment for patients

  • Rooms in clinic to be furnished with the required medical apparatus – Equipment used on patients

  • A children’s play area to be developed – Entertainment for children

  • Having the Government or a benefactor to sponsor the clinic

Questions Asked:

 

The fundamental principles of commencing this project were to compose questions and specifications, in order of these elements to be my main guideline. The questions drawn up were:

  • What are the main objectives that are to be achieved through opening the clinic?

    • Key benefactors to be expectant mothers and children

    • Conduct nutritional awareness programs at the clinic

    • Ensure that a qualified doctor and a mid wife are made available to conduct the clinics on a regular basis.

  • How can these objectives be accomplished?

    • Creating factors that motivates pregnant mothers and children to attend the clinics

    • Contacting Sponsor organizations in order to inquire about awareness programs and health identifications

 

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