Reducing maternal and neonatal fatalities in Bukedea, Uganda required new facilities for a 1950s-era clinic. The project’s objectives were to: reduce home births; increase medical supervision; ensure new mothers receive extended care; and promote primary healthcare for mother and baby. Designers consulted health leaders in Kachumbala and the United Kingdom to incorporate best practices for patient and waste flow, pharmacy, administration and cleaning. A maternity ward with two new labour suites, a nine-bed ward and rooms for a pharmacy, drug storage, administration and cleaning facilities were built. The extra room gave birthing mothers more privacy, allowing them to stay as much as three days for after-birth care. In an area where petty theft can be a problem, the new facility also safely accommodated extended families with areas to sleep, cook a meal or do laundry -- which usually comes to support the mother during the birthing process.
Source Aga Khan Trust for Culture
