Compassion turns mentally unstable woman into loving mother
SHIVGARH, RAE BARELI: Sitting on a cot covered with an old bed sheet in a 10x6 feet mud and brick room, Ramrani, 40, cuddles her fourth child.
Compassion has turned this mentally unstable woman into a caring mother.
“She has now understood her responsibilities as a mother,” says a neighbour, adding: “She did not take much interest in bringing up her other three children.”
Ramrani used to abandon her babies after birth. Her first two children, a daughter and a son, were raised by her neighbours.
The third child, a girl, was looked after by her two elder siblings.
After the marriage of her eldest daughter, Ramrani’s 14-yearold son looks after the household activities as she is unable to take care of daily chores.
After being physically abused, Ramrani pre-maturely gave birth to her fourth child.
Unable to understand child care and breastfeeding, she was trained at the community health centre (CHC) in Shivgarh in Rae Bareli, by a compassionate companion Agrima Nirmala.
Clad in red and white sarees, Agrimas (torchbearers) are using care and compassion to save lives.
They have chosen to devote their lives to selflessly take care of newborn children.
From holding the baby to breastfeeding and keeping herself and the baby clean, Ramrani was guided by Agrima Nirmala at every step.
Ramrani was also informed about Kangaroo Medical Care (KMC), a scientifically proven skin-to-skin care method to reduced neonatal mortality.
“We had to clean her and the baby for the first few days but now she does it all on her own,” says Agrima Nirmala, the in-charge of Kangaroo Mother Care unit at the CHC.
In less than a year, Agrima Nirmala has taken care of over 265 newborn babies at Shivgarh.
In-charge of Shivgarh community health centre (CHC) LP Sonkar said, “In the absence of proper care, there is a risk to the child’s life. However, with better care at KMC unit and adequate training on life saving methods, mothers are able to save and nurture their children.”
“On July 28, 2017, we started catering to babies who were born underweight. The least weight on which we gave Kangaroo Medical Care was 910 gms,” says Agrima Nirmala.
Like Nirmala, there are Agrimas in each of the 18 health establishments in the district.
It is not easy to work as Agrima who practically act as a bridge between the doctors and the mothers to save underweight newborn in Uttar Pradesh, a state that loses more than 2,00,000 newborn babies each year due to preventable causes.