Haiti earthquake: women struggle in its aftermath

Women and girls living in Haiti feel as if they are living in “eternal uncertainty” (Photo: Samuel Lamery Pierre)

A little more than three months ago, the Caribbean nation of Haiti was hit by a massive 7.2-magnitude earthquake that had devastating effects.

The August 14 disaster killed more than 2,200 people, injured about 12,000, lost 344 people, and damaged 130,000 homes.

Although reports of the earthquake may have faded from the headlines, for a country still rebuilding from a similar power in 2010, Haiti is still reeling from the impact of that day’s events.

With the population tragically far from recovery, women and girls have been particularly affected by the disaster – especially when it comes to healthcare.

Local medics have reported stress-related preterm births – which in turn put additional strain on an already strained health system.

The United Nations Population Fund, an agency that aims to improve reproductive, sexual and maternal health around the world, has sent frontline workers to Haiti to help women in the midst of a crisis.

Shockingly, the staff found that many women are regularly kidnapped, raped and violent, and stated that they are deeply concerned about their future in a country plagued by poverty, inequality and natural disasters.

Metro.co.uk spoke exclusively with some of the women affected by the long-term consequences of the earthquake to find out what life looks like.

I ran through a tin roof to escape

Stefan Edberg Belloni is a midwife and midwife in the southern section of Koto Health Center and works on an inter-agency health project run in conjunction with UNFPA.

She was at home when the earthquake struck and remembers vividly the chaos that followed.

“I was in the kitchen and I heard a noise,” the 29-year-old recalls. One of the doors opened and the gas stove fell off.

‘Gas [spread through] A fire broke out in the house.

A picture of an unnamed young mother with her newborn after a caesarean section (Photo: Samuel Lamery-Pierre) More than 2,200 were killed in the August earthquake in Haiti (Photo: Samuel Lamery-Pierre)

Desperately trying to escape the flames, Stefan managed to dash onto her tin roof and through the tops of other nearby houses. But since her building was damaged by the earthquake, that meant that once it was finished, she had nowhere to go back to.

“I slept in the public square on the day of the earthquake,” she says. “After that, I lived with a friend for eight days.”

Stephane now lives with relatives in the Haitian capital, Port-au-Prince, but she said the health center where she works has also been damaged.

“Its doors are closed,” she explains. “Discussions are underway with the city council to see when the health center can start operating elsewhere.”

Although the facilities were destroyed during the disaster, Stefan tells us she was given equipment from the National Ambulance Center so she could help try to save some of the victims.

“I took care of many people,” she says, before mentioning some of the injuries she had to deal with: “A broken head, dislocated bones…”

The devastated neighborhood in downtown Jeremy, a relatively isolated city in the west of the country (Photo: Samuel Lamery Pierre) Some 130,000 homes were damaged in the earthquake (Photo: Samuel Lamery Pierre)

Among them, she tells us, was also a six-months pregnant woman who was at risk of preterm labor, whom the team had sent to a hospital in Port Salut more than a half-hour drive away, after giving her initial treatment.

We also cared for a woman whose face was smashed into a wall during the earthquake. We treated her and referred her to the hospital, but she died,” Stefan recalls wistfully.

Stress causes premature labour.

Nurse and midwife Lourdjina Dorilas has been working at a maternity hospital in Haiti, Saint Antoine de Jeremie, since June 2018.

Describing a typical day at her job, she says, “We often work in the morning, pray, and check the service report to see which women we should take care of first.

Then we put the necessary equipment for childbirth and other health care.

In addition to supporting women during childbirth, Lourdjina and the team help expectant mothers suffering from preeclampsia – a condition in pregnancy that can be fatal if left untreated.

“We accompany them for psychological and emotional support,” she explains, adding that their role also includes caring for newborns as well.

Nurse and midwife Lourdjina Dorilas has been working at a maternity hospital in Haiti, Saint Antoine de Jeremy, since June 2018 (Photo: Samuel Lamery Pierre)

“We take care of almost everything – except for the prenatal consultation,” adds Lourdjina.

But since the earthquake, she said she has seen additional pressure on the hospital and acknowledged that there is an increase in the number of children coming in early.

“Many women have given birth prematurely, which is related to the stress of the August 14 earthquake,” Lourgina explains.

There have been so many births and there are only two of us [duty]. But we took care of emergencies.

“We have met the most urgent needs in order to save more lives.”

On average, the hospital performs more than 100 deliveries per month, including vaginal and cesarean deliveries.

Lourgina was photographed helping an assistant nurse, making sure the newborn is healthy (Photo: Samuel Lamery-Pierre)

Lourgina gives the example of a woman who went into preterm labor, saying: ‘We’ve prepared her psychologically so that you know why we rush with her so much.

‘we [listened] To the baby’s heart through a device that transmits sound from the mother’s womb to the outside.

Worryingly, the baby might not survive, so Lourgina and her team got ready to support the mother and prepared to resuscitate the baby if needed.

“The surgery for the mother could not have taken place as quickly as we had hoped,” she recalls. In the end, we escorted her to the operating room and reassured her until delivery. Fortunately, the child came out alive.

‘I was shocked’

New mum Gillette Tudor, 29, had a baby shortly before the earthquake – yet she feared for her health and that of her baby.

When she was first told she would need a cesarean section, she admitted she was shocked.

“Because I know all the risks associated with a C-section, especially since you live in a country with a failing health system,” she explains.

A nurse midwife in training with a newborn baby at Saint Antoine de Jeremie Hospital (Photo: Samuel Lamery Pierre)

“But thanks to the support of my midwife and gynecologist, I finally accepted the procedure and it went well.”

By comparison, Moniz Jolie, 28, gave birth to her child just weeks after the natural disaster.

She was taken to Saint-Antoine-de-Jeremy Hospital after she started experiencing pain and when her waters broke, the fluid turned yellow.

It was a trip that involved having to cross a valley and ride a slow motorbike to get there.

When the doctors needed a cesarean section, the doctors told Moniz, “The baby could die, and the mother could die too. This is a very risky issue.”

However, her birth went smoothly. “After 16 minutes everything was fine,” she says, explaining that she named her baby Devkali Marceline.

According to midwife Lourdjina, it’s not just childbirth that has become more difficult for women in Haiti since the earthquake.

“For those lucky enough to meet them, I can see in their eyes concern about the future,” she explains.

That is why nowadays many women leave the country in illegal and dangerous conditions to seek refuge in other countries – because their country has become unlivable and disgusting.

Lourgina cleans the newborn and provides necessary assistance to the mother for the first time (Photo: Samuel Lamery Pierre) She says that the lives of women in Haiti currently are “stressful, unacceptable and frightening” (Photo: Samuel Lamery Pierre)

Lourdjina adds that she feels Haiti’s social and political situation, the failure of our health system, the Covid-19 pandemic and gender inequality, have also affected the future of women across the country.

“Women continue to fight every day for their economic independence, access to equitable health care, and peace and security,” she explains.

They also continue to resist economic hardship, natural disasters, and various types of violence.

On the other hand, in Haiti there are few women who play major roles, whether political, social or economic due to the low status of women in society.

“These women are less educated, have higher levels of poverty and maternal mortality, and lower access to jobs.”

More: women

Lourdjina suggests that those trying to “break away from traditional roles” could “experience high levels of violence” while doing so.

“They have become vulnerable to banditry and gangs operating in full swing in our country,” she explains. They fear being kidnapped and raped, and often live with the physical, psychological, and traumatic effects of this insecurity.

Haitian women are currently desperate and have a lot of interest in their future.

“I also look to the future with a suspicious eye,” Lourdjina admits. Because the conditions we are currently experiencing in this country are extremely stressful, unacceptable and frightening.

“We live in eternal uncertainty.”

What is the United Nations Population Fund doing?

To maintain health services in the midst of the crisis, UNFPA and its partners have deployed mobile health teams throughout the affected areas of Haiti. Capacity is being strengthened in more than 40 health facilities and hospitals to ensure providers are able to manage pregnancy-related complications, provide family planning services, and provide support to survivors of sexual and gender-based violence, including psychosocial counseling and referrals.

Reproductive health kits – which contain medical and non-medical supplies, maternal health drugs and contraceptives – are also being distributed along with personal protective equipment for frontline workers.

You can help the organization by making a donation here.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].

For more stories like this, check out our news page.

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