In the city of Cairo, an REI-sponsored doula is helping mothers raise healthy children, beginning with pregnancy. A trained doula helps women navigate pregnancy, delivery and the early days of infancy, increasing the likelihood of a safe delivery for mom and baby and a healthier start to life. And that’s a big deal in this nation where seven in 10 births were caesarian, contributing to maternal death and chronic illnesses for children.
In 2016, a state-of-the-art maternity hospital asked Lydia, a trained doula, to teach their doctors and nurses to deliver babies naturally and train them in proper procedures in the labor and delivery room. In addition, Lydia is now scheduled to begin teaching classes in two additional teaching hospitals in Cairo. Medical residents from all over Cairo are registering for the doula-taught classes.
It is exciting to see both mothers and fathers embracing this new direction for childbirth and taking an active role in the birthing process. And as fathers feel prepared and empowered to be active participants in the raising of their children, their families are strengthened – and the children are ultimate beneficiaries! REI, through the work of a doula named Lydia, is on the forefront of change, building the nation of Egypt, one childbirth at a time!
