Completed Projects
BBN works with public health institutions, social change organizations and individuals to address service gaps, advance midwifery education and training, and to create awareness among the general public, doctors, nurses and hospitals on how obstetric care can be transformed through innovation.
COVID 19
The Need
Severely curtailed health services have disconnected individuals and families from healthcare, support systems and information. COVID-19 fear and stigma, outreach service retractions and a shortage of non-COVID medication have reduced care-seeking. Millions of families are unable to ask critical questions and receive routine preventive care over the course of pregnancy, labour, postpartum, infancy and beyond. Comorbidities (e.g., diabetes, hypertension, mental health) , undernutrition, low birth weight, breastfeeding problems and missed vaccination are examples of conditions that amplify missteps and can quickly intensify. India risks losing hard-fought progress in maternal, newborn and infant health for over 25 million annual births. Community-based strategies could prevent neonatal deaths by one third and prevent maternal harm, and are urgently needed.
The BBN Solution
BBN’s innovative free Mother-Child COVID-19 Helpline provides guidance on pregnancy, birth, postpartum and newborn/infant health in the context of COVID-19 to anyone seeking help in India and even outside the country without costing the callers anything.
We give practical advice about safely seeking care during the pandemic, safety precautions for pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers and newborns and on-the-ground assistance with testing locations and protocols. We help callers find MCH (maternal child health) facilities, providers and services that meet their needs. We emphasize reproductive rights even-and especially-during the lockdown. We help women navigate pandemic-related reproductive rights abuses such as refusal of care in labour when the woman lacks COVID-test results; the separation of mother and baby after birth due to lack of COVID-test results; and caesarean section with no medical indications.
Impact/Coverage
During the first six months of the pandemic, calls to our Helpline increased by 80%. Our callers are from all parts of India as well as Pakistan, Kuwait and Dubai. We have provided guidance and support in finding a doctor/hospital when most were refusing new or COVID-positive patients, COVID-care measures if positive, precautionary measures during consultations, protocols for birth during COVID and more.
