Projects
The Rose Project funds programmes which address maternal and child healthcare in Malawi. Mother to Child HIV transmission is the second most common form of HIV transmission in Malawi and accounts for 30,000 babies being born with the virus each year. If you place an HIV positive expectant mother on treatment during pregnancy, the risk of transmission to her child is almost eliminated. In addition the all important health of the mother is looked after, in turn improving her chance of caring for her child long-term and the rest of the family. There are two principal obstacles to providing healthcare to mothers and infants.
- Lack of healthcare workers to administer healthcare programmes: in clinics hospitals and the community
- Lack of good infrastructure: so many healthcare clinics and hospitals are wholly inadequate to house patients and provide medical and nursing services.
Read on to find out more
Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission
Mother to child transmission is the second most common form of HIV transmission in East & Southern Africa. In Malawi it accounts for 30,000 infants being born HIV positive each year. But if a woman is treated while pregnant, the rate of HIV transmission is almost elimiated.
View video on The Lighthouse Clinic
In 2006 The Rose Project funded a new HIV clinic in Lilongwe the capital of Malawi called Lighthouse. At this clinic there is a strong focus on treatment to prevent mother to child HIV transmission in pregnancy.
In 2008, The Rose Project and Lighthouse wished to extend this treatment to be available to expectant women living in the rural areas. In May 2008,the rural prevention of mother to child HIV transmission programme began .Counsellors travel out from Lighthouse to the rural anti-natal clinic on motorbikes. In the first year of the programme 4,000 expectant women tested HIV positive and have been referred for treatment.
This programme is part funded by Irish Aid
New Maternity Hospital
Approximately 20% of the women giving birth at the largest maternity hospital in Lilongwe are HIV positive. Due to the acute shortage of staff, overcrowding and poor facilities, many patients aren't tested for HIV and therefore go untreated, increasing the already high rates of mother to child transmission.
The Rose Project has given a grant of €3,000,000 to build and equip a new 100 bed maternity hospital in Malawi. This will transform many women's lives.
We are working with a number of Malawian groups, the Department for International Collaboration, Haukeland University Hospital Norway and the Coombe Maternity Hospital Dublin to address the shortage of doctors and nurses and to look at ways of up-skilling the existing staff.
Healthcare Workers Wellness Centre
There is a crisis in Malawi in relation to healthcare workers. Many have succumbed to the virus or have left the country in search of greener pastures. Poor working conditions, low salaries ($40 per month for nurses) and a lack of career structure are major contributing factors to the shortage.
The Rose Project in partnership with the Norwegian & Malawian nurses's organisation is funding a wellness centre for healthcare workers in Lilongwe, the capital of Malawi. This will be co-ordinated by the International Council of Nurses in association with the Malawian Association of Nurses and Midwives.
Wellness Centres were developed by the Association of Nurses in Lesotho. The principle is to provide medical care for healthcare workers in a confidential environment. HIV counseling, testing and treatment is also provided for the workers and their families. On-going career education is also available.
Wellness Centres have proven to be remarkably successful in Lesotho and Swaziland. They have halted the attrition of nurses and have boosted morale for these front-line workers generally.
