Prayer Camps Killing Pregnant Women – Doctor

General News of Saturday, June 15, 2019

Source: starrfm.com.gh

2019-06-15

Dr. Kennedy Brightson, director of the Shai-Osudoku District Hospital in Dodowa, lamented the growing number of prayer camps around the hospital, which he says is the leading cause of maternal death In the region.

He added that pregnant women are led to visit these prayer camps instead of going to the hospital and that when the situation becomes critical, they rush to the hospital and eventually die due various forms of complications.

"Why do Ghanaian women allow all their bodies and brains to be controlled with religious semantics? That's wrong, God does not like it and it's against his will to seduce your congregation as a pastor so that she does not come to the hospital, "he lamented.

Dr. Brightson said that there was more need to collaborate with these prayer camps because he thought that ignorance also fleshed out their activities. Some pastors were so disrespectful to hospital health officials.

He noted that the hospital had not had any maternal deaths since taking office, as the group was organizing a pregnancy school for its patients and their family members to educate them on what to do. for a safe delivery.

Dr. Brightson made this proposal when the Jay Foundation donated items to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of the Hospital for Mothers, Babies and Staff.

The Jay Foundation, which aims to help premature babies and their mothers reduce mortality, has already made a donation to the NICU of Korle-Bu University Hospital and General Hospitals. Nsawam and Tema.

The foundation donated items specifically requested by the hospital, including vegetables, groceries, disinfectants and antiseptics, sheets, baby clothes and a balance, among others.

Dr. Brightson continued, "Hospitals in towns and villages in the mountains are very far away. So they use the prayer camps a lot. You can have a woman with eclampsia, where her blood pressure is so high that her brain can no longer stand it, so that it starts sending bad signals to the body and the body starts to tremble. . Now, once these things begin to happen, they think that a certain Satan has possessed the woman and shakes the woman's body. "

"And they take women to prayer camps. The more you pray, the more the condition of the woman becomes worse, "he added.

He said: "This is one of the major challenges we face. And in doing so, they are almost dead. When you arrive practically dead, it becomes very difficult to resurrect because we already have organs in your possession. "

With more than 4,000 pregnant women, the hospital has not had any maternal deaths over the years.

Dr. Brightson commented on the donation made to his institution: "Donations are fundamentally good when people who come to make a donation have already interacted with you, so you know that they have the heart of your institution at heart, that makes gifts pleasant.

"Donations are good, especially these, because they also arrive at the right time when we need certain things, for example the Candler we searched for, the scales, etc."

He said the hospital wanted to strengthen its neonatal intensive care unit and bring it up to international standards: "That means we need extra equipment, baby courts and, in particular, radiant heaters and light therapy devices. "

Naa Kuorkor Mayne-Eghan, Founder of the Jay Foundation, addressed Starrfmcom.gh: "We visited a number of hospitals, but we decided to go to Shai-Osudoku because they asked us to visit them and meet some of their needs. "

"The rest of the year, we will visit the previous hospitals where we went to follow up, because if we do not do it, you will not know what is the status of the items you have given" , she said.

On the subject of prayer camps, she said, "For women, we mostly look at the emotional side, and because of that, we like to hang on to God. It's very good to cling to God, but pregnancy is a step that puts a woman in a very difficult position. Eat well, go to the hospital, take anti-natal drugs will help.

She added: "I will therefore encourage all pregnant women in Ghana to visit hospitals to take care of themselves."