After having to cancel several missions due to all the turmoil in our beloved North, SANA returned to Btourmaz today, travelling along novel roads in order to avoid the sniper-manifested routes…

 

There was a large group of expectant and non-expectant women waiting for SANA where an educational session was carried out. The session started with addressing specific questions and concerns of the attendees, and then SANA concentrated on discussing specific health recommendations for the expectant mothers during the upcoming Holy Month of Ramadan. In addition, SANA distributed educational pamphlets that covered tips for expectant mothers, to be used while fasting, that had been put together by the Lebanese Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

 

Following the session, SANA carried out physical exams and ultrasound scans on the expectant mothers who ranged in age between 16 and 37 years. Of note today is that 41% were on pregnancy 4 or greater, 29% were on there first pregnancy, and 53% had had a maximum of 1 prenatal care visit thus far in their pregnancy.

 

SANA’s extends its appreciation to Levant Alie Houses SAL and Mr. Dory Mansour for all the nutritional supplements that were made available to the patients today.

 

After another rewarding mission, plans were made with Nurse Ghinwa for a future mission to Btourmaz. SANA returned back home alongside groves of heavenly, delicious apricots where an elderly woman, carrying the heaviest load on her head was spotted: the true embodiment of all the worries in our troubled world…

Amidst all the turmoil in Tripoli with snipers on the loose and RPG’s shattering our fragile peace, SANA headed to Dar Al Zahra with Medecins Sans Frontieres today.

 

There was a large number of expectant mothers waiting for SANA today the majority of whom were newly in Lebanon and not previously seen by SANA. What was notable about today’s group was their young age where 38% of the mothers where less than 20 years of age, and 44% were of their first or second pregnancy and 56% had had no prenatal care or just one prenatal visit this pregnancy. As such, many had incorrect dates and SANA re-dated 38% of the patients scanned. In addition, there were 50% on their 4^th pregnancy or more, and several with complications: a set of twins, a mother on her 7^th pregnancy with previous history of post partum hemorrhage, 2 women with suspected fetal abnormalities detected on scan, another with polyhydramnios and another with a previous son with muscular dystrophy. Arrangements for followup were made for all these patients in cooperation with the MSF team. And today, SANA was accompanied by one of MSF’s physicians who carried out her first scans ever under the direction of SANA incorporating the 6-Step ISUOG Outreach Approach to Obstetrical Sonograpghy.

 

The day ended with several phone calls to all involved in today’s mission about the unstable situation in Tripoli…The teams headed back home burdened by our deplorable state and hoping for a stronger lasting peace to finally take over our troubled land…

It is with much pride that today SANA celebrates its 2^nd anniversary and reflects back on many great lessons learnt from amazing women who make the impossible possible… Over the past 2 years, SANA has carried out full prenatal care visits on 402 women, completed ISUOG’s 6 Step Basic Approach to the Midwives and Obstetrical Nurses at the Governmental Hospital of Seer Al Dinnieh during which countless expectant mothers were scanned, provided consultations to over 200 women, in addition to numerous educational activities all over Akkar, Dinnieh and the underserved areas of North Lebanon. None of this would have been possible without SANA’s partners and supporters at the forefront of which are Medecins Sans Frontieres, World Vision International, the Governmental Hospital of Seer Al Dinnieh, Btourmaz’s Health Dispensary, and ISUOG Outreach: our constant source of support and inspiration…. SANA looks forward to a bright and impactful future helping improve the status of our underserved mothers in Lebanon…