Hope Memorial Medical Clinic
The Hope Memorial Clinic currently is serving Grace children and families (approx 300 families at present). All of the people who come under the care of Grace have access to the Clinic. The Clinic will, at full capacity be able to offer free or low cost health care and medicines, free health education and support to mothers through program designed to help, particularly with young or first time mothers, develop a strong understanding of health child rearing and nurturing.
Whenever there is a case that is beyond the level of understanding of the Nurse in charge of the clinic, the patient will be referred to a Doctor or the hospital.
The Need
The Amhara region, of which Bahir Dar is the capital, currently has the worst showing in many areas of the Reproductive Health indicators. Few mothers receive health care during pregnancy and traditional practices such as Female Genital Mutilation, “cutting the tongue” (circumcision of the epiglottis), feeding butter to babies and other dangerous practices are still more common here than in any other region in Ethiopia.
The region is also one of the highest in regards to HIV infection, so the Clinic will be offering counselling services for infected mothers, encouraging them to get involved in the Anti-retroviral Therapy (“ART”) programme that runs from the local hospital.
Baby "Hope"
The Hope Memorial Clinic was named after a baby girl who came into care after a life of malnutrition and destitution. Her mother did not know how to care for her child and was too poor to seek medical help. By the time she came to Grace, it was too late to provide the care she had needed months earlier. Little Hope died at the age of 7 months weighing only 2.8kg (6 lbs), less than when she was born. The Grace staff cared for her and loved her until our Father called her home.
Her death prompted the establishment of the clinic to help mothers care for their children. Our aim is to not let this happen again. We want to be able to provide mothers with access to help, information and health care that will assist them raise their children healthy and strong.
