Kampala, 1st July 2011: A new Marie Stopes Uganda outreach team has been taking bold new steps in the fishing communities around Lakes Victoria and Kyoga, providing family planning services where they have not been available before.
The new team is funded by USAID through the STRIDES programme to serve unmet need for family planning.
View our photo gallery from the outreach visitCollin Okello is a mother of five, aged 30, and had been wanting to stop having children for two years but had her last baby in March 2011. Her family is based at one of the landing sites near the Muinami Health Centre II in Nakasangola.
When Collin heard that the Marie Stopes Uganda team had set up a service based at the Muinami Health Centre II in Nkasangola, near her home, she decided to find out about all her options.
Collin visited the centre and received counselling in her own language. She decided that tubal ligation, a permanent form of contraception, was the right choice for her and her family. This is a service that hadn’t previously been available through the public sector and other providers in the area.
Dr Priscilla performed the procedure with the help of her clinical officer and outreach team leader, Harriett.
Another service provider, Rose, gave “vocal local” - a technique that helps clients feel comfortable and effectively manage any pain - to distract Collin from the minor surgery.
Collin spent a short time recovering and was able to return to her family and regular activities on the same day. And the outreach team and health centre remained available to her for any questions or follow-up.
A government health worker and enthusiastic observer, Janet, told us: “I would love to learn these long term methods to provide a permanent service to the community, and it is so helpful to get involved with Marie Stopes.”
Dr Priscilla, Harriett and Rose are typical of the 8,000 extraordinary men and women working for Marie Stopes International. Every day they work to make sure the women in the fishing communities around Lakes Victoria and Kyoga can access and choose the contraceptive that is right for them.
At Marie Stopes International our clients are at the centre of everything we do; through our innovation and partnerships, underserved women and couples are able to access services and make choices about their sexual and reproductive health.
Find more about our impact around the worldVisit the Marie Stopes Uganda website