Question

Please tell a story about pregancy complications a Black woman faces. This can be the story of an specific person, or specific neighborhood, or village, or school, or family. A good story invites us to explore an issue in public health in a real way to better understand it. The story can be about a real person.

You can even use an amalgam of real people and real situations . It can be a tragic story or it can be a positive, uplifting or aspirational story, perhaps about someone who overcame adversity. Please be very informative about the power of storytelling for social change communication in black pregnancy complications

Answer 1

I found Nisha,in an emergency section during my internship. She hails from a remote village in Maharashtra,India. She came with complaint of PPROM.I was amazed that this was her fifth pregnancy and she is the mother of that little girls roaming around her making trouble. On investigation,I could understand that till date she hadn't done any ANC visits and this was her 35^thweek of pregnancy. She is anemic with a Hb of 5. Her face seems to be panic, both fearful and tensed. She was pale and tired.

She only asked me repeatedly about what gender the child is and I couldn't say her as in India revealing the gender of a baby in womb is a punishable offence and most importantly she is not having any scan reports too.I told her to relax and be stable but she never allowed me to ask her anything but she repeatedly tells that she needs a boy child and then only her husband and in laws will take her home otherwise she doesn't have any idea what to do then.

She was shifted to stage 2 Labour room with a diagnosis of partial HELLP with a BP of 165/100. The condition seems to be critical and I explained her situation to the lady whoom I think that her mother taking care of the kids outside the LR.I found no other people or her husband there.

When I was ready for the shift change,I just gone to her bed and had given hope. She begged me as if I was not telling her the gender even if I had known it.I prayed to God, for her Health and for the baby.Even I wished for a boy.

Dr Aisha called me during my dinner that Nisha was delivered and she had a girl child.I felt little depressed and complained God for this.

On my next day visit, I found Nisha with her cute little angel. She was dejected and depressed.She told me that she won't go to her husband's home as her husband will harm her and her kids and blaim her not for having a boy child. I made her understand that it's not her fault and it's quite natural to have a girl child and not only the mother is responsible for this

No one came for her discharge and I phoned her husband.He was an arrogant by the way he speaks.He repeated that he doesn'tn't want the mother and child. I tried my level best to make him understand the situation but I failed.At last I filed a complaint to the police station about this and after 2 days he came to the hospital and took them to thier home.

Months passed by and one evening Aisha phoned me telling that she found Nisha in the ICCU with 80% burns in her body. I ran to the ICU and I couldn't see her face. I was so disappointed that days and had struggled a lot to bring her back to life and one day she left this world of discrimination and racism. After her demise I could understand more things about her life from the newspapers. I could understand the seriousness of the illeterate people from remote areas whomever found and blamed women for having a girl child and appreciate men for having a boy child. I don't have any idea of how the girl child could strive and struggle in the society like this..I respect my parents for not killing me in my womb..not changing their face when I was born..not making me a doctor..I love them and live for them..to change this world..