Pumwani Maternity Hospital has sustained investment in the health and well-being of mothers and children to end preventable deaths. [Ryan Kerubo, Standard]
For many newborns in Kenya, survival depends on more than skilled doctors and medicine. Maintaining body temperature in the first hours of life can mean the difference between survival and serious complications.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), newborns are particularly vulnerable to hypothermia, a condition in which the body loses heat faster than it can produce it. The condition is linked to breathing difficulties, low blood sugar, infections and an increased risk of death, especially among premature and low-birth-weight babies.
A new central heating system has been installed at Pumwani Maternity Hospital’s newborn unit in an effort to reduce cases of hypothermia among infants at Kenya’s largest maternity facility, where between 80 and 90 babies are delivered every day.
Dr Chris Mugambi, the hospital’s Medical Superintendent, said hypothermia remains one of the biggest threats facing newborns, particularly those born prematurely or with low birth weight.
