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LA
DALIA, Nicaragua ?
In their fight
against global poverty, All For One, in collaboration with CARE International,
rebuilt and refurbished a clinic in the small, rural farming town of La Dalia.
With construction beginning in 2005 and ending in June, 2006, All For One was
able to provide the people of this impoverished town and surrounding areas in
central Nicaragua with a health facility that includes an emergency room, a
labor and delivery room, a laboratory, and an infant care room.
In the labor
and delivery room, All For One contributed a new ventilation system, new beds,
a new bathroom, a gynecology chair, and new equipment used in deliveries. Prior
to remodeling this area of the clinic, only approximately 39-43% of women in
the community could deliver in the clinic and were forced to share beds during
and after the birthing process in a room that had no air conditioning. Now,
thanks to All For One, there are more beds and equipment to help a greater
number of women in a clean, air-conditioned environment. Also, thanks to the
gynecology chair and new equipment, the clinic is capable of providing pregnant
women with pre-natal care that will prevent complications with birth. By
granting the clinic with this new equipment, the clinic is not only capable of
helping more women in the community, but also lowering the area?s extreme
maternal and infant mortality rate.
In the
clinic?s emergency room, major changes were made to the clinic?s infrastructure
and equipment. A potable water supply was added and approved, along with the
construction of storage cabinets for the clinic?s supplies. Before this
addition, clinic workers had to haul water long-distances to the clinic and had
no safe area to store their supplies. Also windows with glass panes were added,
which were not there prior to All For One?s involvement. Since many new beds
were supplied, the clinic is now capable of in-patient care and monitoring,
which they were unable to accommodate in the past. This will allow clinic
workers to provide a wider range of care for patients who they were unable to
accommodate in the past.
Another aspect
of patient care that the clinic was unable to provide in the past was the
ability to specialize in the treatment of infants and children. With new cribs
and equipment catering to the needs of newborns, the clinic can now offer
post-delivery care for newborns. Since this was unavailable previously, there
was not much that clinic workers could do for a newborn since they did not have
the means or equipment to do so. Because of the current availability of this
much-needed asset to the clinic, All For One was able to help the clinic attempt
to lower the area?s infant mortality rate.
The people of
La Dalia have voiced their thanks for the contributions of All For One, as well
as performed at the ribbon-cutting ceremony (as seen in the video on our video
page). Because of All For One, approximately 58,000 women of reproductive age,
60,000 children under the age of 5, 56,000 newborns in 173 communities can be
helped in the La Dalia area. Because of All For One, the infant and maternal
mortality rate in La Nicaragua can be lowered. Because of All For One, hope was
created for future generations in Nicaragua.
For a video of
the All For One?s contributions in La Dalia, as well as a message of gratitude
from Ralph Merriam, the Programs Director of CARE Nicaragua, and the people of
La Dalia, check out our video page: http://www.allforone.org/videos/videos.jsp
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