UNFPA’s Saving Lives: Midwives on a Mission in Peru’s Flooded Heartland

In the face of devastating floods that gripped Veintiséis de Octubre in Peru’s Piura district, the UNFPA-supported Saving Lives project emerged as a beacon of hope for pregnant women and families grappling with the aftermath of the disaster. 

Implemented in collaboration with the local partner organisation Prisma, this initiative deployed dedicated midwives who ventured door-to-door, providing critical sexual and reproductive health services to those cut off from traditional healthcare channels.

The flooding disrupted city services, trapping residents in their homes, and making access to essential health services a challenging ordeal. For expectant mothers like Miryam Coello, navigating waterlogged dirt roads to attend check-ups became nearly impossible. Moreover, the floods brought with them a surge in rat, fly, and mosquito populations, posing an increased risk of water-borne diseases. Miryam, unfortunately, fell victim to dengue fever.

Climate emergencies, such as the flooding in Piura, disproportionately affect women and girls. Access to sexual and reproductive health services becomes compromised, and the risk of gender-based violence escalates, heightening vulnerability to illness. Shockingly, during this flooding emergency, one in five maternal deaths was associated with or caused by dengue.

Miryam, who had been informed of the special attention her pregnancy required due to previous Caesarean sections, faced additional hurdles in securing the necessary care. However, a knock on her door marked the beginning of a life-saving initiative.

The initiative, part of the UNFPA-supported Saving Lives project, implemented in collaboration with local partner organisation Prisma, dispatched trained midwives door-to-door to reach thousands of women like Miryam, who were unable to access health centers due to flooding, economic challenges, or caretaking responsibilities.

Since May 2023, these midwives have been tirelessly visiting flood-affected regions, identifying and supporting nearly 150 pregnant women with crucial services like prenatal check-ups. Remarkably, over 4,500 women have been able to access sexual and reproductive health services, thanks to the dedication of these midwives.

“I had no one to leave my children with because my husband was away working as a fisherman,” shared Miryam. “The group told me they were coming to see me for my check-ups.”

The midwives, working under the Saving Lives project, have not only provided vital care but have also played a pivotal role in increasing staff numbers and reaching areas previously inaccessible.

Bertha Liñán, an obstetric health coordinator collaborating with the UNFPA-backed project, emphasised the relentless efforts of the midwives, stating, “They helped us increase our staff numbers and reach places we couldn’t before.”

For Miryam Coello, the impact of these midwives has been transformative in her life. “My life has changed a lot since they arrived,” she said. Consulting with these midwives, Miryam and her husband made the decision not to have any more children, a crucial aspect of family planning.

Midwives, as highlighted by UNFPA, play a pivotal role in meeting global needs for essential sexual, reproductive, maternal, newborn, and adolescent health interventions. Despite their significance, the world faces a shortage of nearly 1 million midwives, underscoring the urgent need to support and expand initiatives like Saving Lives to ensure access to critical health services for vulnerable populations in times of crisis.

Source: UNFPA