Lhasa Prefecture, Tibet

From a very poor, semi-nomadic farming family, Pema is a 32-year-old woman living in Medro Gongkar County, Tsashue Township, Tagye village. There are ten people in her family now, including her newborn baby – her seventh pregnancy. During the pregnancy, she had three prenatal checkups and received PAVOT (Pregnancy and Village Outreach in Tibet) safe-motherhood messages and a sterile birth kit. However, she was planning to deliver the baby at home in the traditional way, unlike PAVOT’s training that all pregnant women should deliver in a hospital or health clinic.

During Pema’s third prenatal checkup, the Tsashue Township health care provider diagnosed anemia and advised Pema to eat more nutritious food and continue taking prenatal vitamins, particularly because she had been pregnant numerous times and had suffered post-partum hemorrhage during her last delivery. The health care provider also strongly advised Pema to go to the hospital to deliver her baby.

Pema was waiting at home to deliver until the contractions started and her labor became very difficult. Her family called the village health care provider for help and he delivered the baby without much difficulty. However, the placenta did not deliver normally and Pema was bleeding a great deal. Tsering Norbu, the health worker, referred Pema to the township health clinic immediately. Because it was a very dangerous case, health care workers at the township clinic and county hospital referred Pema to a Lhasa city hospital. The family is so grateful to the doctors and One HEART-trained health care workers who saved Pema’s life.

One HEART, Tibet