For children in mountainous areas to develop comprehensively
(Baonghean.vn) - Improving the quality of the population in ethnic minority and mountainous areas is one of the important contents of Project 7 to implement the National Target Program on Socio-Economic Development in Ethnic Minority and Mountainous Areas for the 2021-2030 period.
This is also the consistent content that the Population sector has implemented over the past years, focusing on examination, consultation, screening, diagnosis and treatment of some prenatal and neonatal diseases.
Health care for mothers and children
Nearly 1 month after giving birth to their second child, Mr. and Mrs. Vi Thi Linh, Thai Phong block, Kim Son town (Que Phong) received the test results.newborn screening, the child's heel blood test. Of the 6 indicators, the G6PD deficiency indicator is worrisome, with a high risk when the test result is higher than the threshold. On the day she received this result, Ms. Tran Thi Nhung - a Population Officer of Kim Son town also went directly to the house to discuss and encourage the couple and promptly advise the family to continue monitoring the child's health, and find the right time for the child to continue to go for a check-up.
“Both my husband and I work far away from home, so when we had our second child, we were both very worried. A few months ago, we also went for a NIPT test to screen for birth defects, but we didn’t see anything unusual, so we were quite reassured. When we gave birth, my husband and I were advised to continue to have a heel blood test for the baby to screen for many dangerous diseases, so we decided to do it. Thanks to that, we knew the risks for our child and soon had measures to care for and support the baby later,” said Vi Thi Linh.
Having worked in the population sector for many years in Kim Son town, Ms. Tran Thi Nhung is the one who knows the number of children born in the area as well as newly married couples, those of childbearing age or those preparing to have children. Based on the data that has been compiled, she and her colleagues at the commune station regularly visit and advise. One of the most important contents is to remind couples to have pre-marital health check-ups, prenatal screening when preparing to have children and to take blood from the child's heel as soon as the child is born.
“Since the merger of Muong Noc commune into Kim Son town, the population in the area has increased, including many households of ethnic minorities. Roads are difficult to travel, and information is limited, so many mothers are not interested in health check-ups during pregnancy. Therefore, in the past time, we have integrated and coordinated with departments, sectors, hamlets and block activities, meetings of the Farmers' Association and Women's Association to promote propaganda and mobilization work,” Ms. Tran Thi Nhung added.
Que Phong is a mountainous district with a high proportion of ethnic minorities. Due to customs and lack of knowledge, many children are born without screening, and the rate of malnourished children and children with genetic diseases is quite high.
Previously, the number of newborns who had heel sampling was very low, only about 30 cases per year. Therefore, this year we have increased counseling and explained to families the benefits of heel sampling for disease screening, which is good for future generations of citizens, and the number of children whose blood was taken has increased significantly. Since the beginning of the year, we have screened more than 200 cases (accounting for nearly 40% of newborns) and received feedback that there were more than 10 cases of G6PD deficiency. After receiving the results, we referred the families to Nghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital and other higher-level hospitals for further monitoring and treatment.
Not only in Que Phong district, propaganda and consultation work to raise awareness for people in mountainous areas is being persistently carried out by officials of the Population Department in many localities.
Ms. Vi Thi Khe - a Population officer of Nga My commune (Tuong Duong) said: "The terrain is complex, people in mountainous and highland areas have little access to medical services. Therefore, every year, through population campaign deployments, we try to coordinate with the District Health Center to bring the service to the grassroots, helping women get prenatal screening. After the baby is born, we also encourage families to take blood from the baby's heel to screen for dangerous diseases. In addition, we also guide people in the village to do a good job of disease prevention, provide nutritional advice to pregnant women and women with young children, monitor health, eat hygienically; review the list of children due for vaccination... to urge people to implement".
Strengthening examination and screening
At 29 weeks pregnant, Ha Y Hoa in Tham Hin village, Nam Can commune, Ky Son district, went for her first check-up and ultrasound. However, upon receiving the results, both Hoa and her husband were worried because the fetus showed signs of abnormalities and were advised by the doctor to go to the provincial hospital for a check-up. Here, after the initial examination, the couple was also advised by the doctor at the Center for Prenatal and Newborn Screening and Diagnosis - Nghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital to have a diagnostic test through amniocentesis when the screening results showed a high risk.
Previously, Ms. Hoa and her husband both worked as rubber workers in Quang Binh. Due to their complacency and difficult travel conditions, they had never had a medical examination even though it was their first pregnancy. By the time they discovered the abnormality, the fetus was already large and could lead to many risks that could be dangerous for the fetus.
According to specialist doctor II Tran Anh Tu - Deputy Director of the Center for Prenatal and Newborn Screening and Diagnosis - Nghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital said: "Prenatal and postnatal screening is extremely important to help detect abnormalities in children early. With current techniques, through screening we can increase the chance of giving birth to a healthy child, reduce anxiety about the mother's health as well as the possibility of giving birth to a child with illness or abnormalities.
In addition, blood collection and early screening after birth are also extremely important because there are cases where families with no history of the disease can still give birth to sick children. Particularly in mountainous districts, screening and prevention are important and decisive to avoid congenital hemolytic disease (thalassemia) in children, a disease that appears quite often and causes long-term danger.
Since 2018, the Provincial Department of Population and Family Planning has implemented the Project on prenatal and newborn screening for the period 2018 - 2022 and has so far been replicated in all communes, wards and towns in 21 districts, cities and towns in the province. Thanks to the implementation of the project, Nghe An has organized many communication, consultation and training sessions to provide information on improving population quality, prenatal and newborn screening for tens of thousands of subjects.
In the past 5 years, prenatal screening has been performed for nearly 135,000 cases, reaching a rate of 75%, and for newborns, nearly 12,000 cases, reaching a rate of 17%.
The reality of program implementation also shows that, besides the achieved results, diagnosis and screening work is also facing many difficulties, especially in mountainous districts.
In the coming time, we will focus on prioritizing programs for ethnic minority areas such as prenatal and newborn screening programs, prevention of consanguineous marriage, early marriage, prevention of thalassemia, etc. In addition, we will continue to communicate and advocate for policies and laws on population, marriage and family; organize professional consultations in the community on pre-marital health consultation and examination; prenatal and newborn screening, diagnosis and treatment. At the same time, we will implement many programs and bring services to each facility to help people have the opportunity to be examined, consulted and receive comprehensive health care.
