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As Russian air strikes escalate against Ukraine, a hospital in Kyiv struggles to care for pregnant women and newborns
Ukraine
KYIV, Ukraine — “When the alarm went off, we were all rushed into the shelter,” said Oksana, who is 26 weeks pregnant. “Even the tiniest babies from the neonatal intensive care unit were brought down by nurses and aides…
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“It’s a burning issue”: How one midwife is harnessing new technology to support mothers and newborns in India
India
LUDHIANA, India/UNITED NATIONS, New York – As a midwife, Lovepreet Saini is always on the lookout for new ways to help mothers.
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Three years after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, meet the midwife who stayed, delivered – and saved lives
BAMYAN PROVINCE, Afghanistan – “If I had left, a mother or a baby could have died. I stayed because people, especially pregnant women, needed my support.”
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Health and humanitarian workers face record violence: Here are 5 reasons the world must take action
New York
UNITED NATIONS, New York – There were more than 1,500 attacks on health facilities last year. More than 280 humanitarians and at least 750 health workers and patients were killed. These numbers were racked up not on…
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Peer-to-peer information is power: The hotline equipping young people in Paraguay to exert their rights
Paraguay
ASUNCIÓN, Paraguay – Hardly a day goes by when the phone doesn’t ring: Young people call and write to Paraguay’s peer-to-peer, comprehensive sexuality education hotline constantly to ask about menstruation, sexually…
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Empowering indigenous women in Venezuela to become mothers by choice, not chance
ZULIA, Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela – “The last time I was in labour, I was on the brink of death,” said Omaira Opikuko, a member of the Yukpa indigenous community in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
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Nurturing hope and leadership among Gaza’s young people
GAZA, Palestine – “My message to the world is how important it is to strengthen the role of youth in societies, and to invest in their potential,” said twenty-three-year old Sarah Al Shamali, from Gaza City.
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Supporting the first line of response amid climate crises in Yemen
SA’ADA GOVERNORATE, Yemen – “My children and I are suffering from illnesses and my husband is in prison,” said 31-year-old Amina Ismail Qasim. “Now I’ve lost my daughter, the pain is unbearable.”
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“Bringing smiles to mothers and babies”: Midwives promote safe births at Nimbo health centre in Côte D’Ivoire
BOUAKÉ, Côte D’Ivoire – Entrepreneur Rosine Gnohou was at a prenatal check-up when the midwife she was seeing delivered some concerning news: Her amniotic fluid levels were low.
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Empowering adolescent girls in Niger to take control of their lives – and futures
TESSAOUA DEPARTMENT, Niger – “Every young girl must have an economic activity. It’s humiliating to ask for money: You have to look out for yourself,” said 17-year-old Maimounatou, who lives in Tessaoua, in Niger’s south…
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Respectful maternity care in Paraguay puts women's autonomy at the centre of childbirth
KATUETE/ASUNCIÓN, Paraguay – Preparing to give birth for the first time at age 39, Claudelina Ortellado Portillo was anxious. “Because of my age and because everything was new to me, plus I had a hard time getting…
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In Georgia, an LGBTQIA+ advocate making HIV prevention and health care accessible for all
TBILISI, Georgia – As a social worker for the LGBTQIA+ community in Georgia’s capital Tbilisi, Beka Gabadadze quickly learned how a person’s gender identity and expression can affect every part of their life.
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