Another interesting read about healthcare in Sierra Leone. And the pregnant lady who lost her baby due to lack of transportation to get to a hospital lives just outside of Freetown, the capital city of Sierra Leone. Imagine what life is like for people upcountry.
"The recently-built health centre in the Sierra Leonean village of Charlotte was shuttered. Inside were lamps without bulbs, infant scales that had not weighed any babies, an unused baby cot, boxes of surgical plaster, unopened bottles of formaldehyde, and rows of beds without mattresses...
Aminata Conteh was pregnant in January 2008. When she went into labour her pains persisted and the local traditional birth attendant was unable to treat her problem. With no other transportation, neighbours placed her in a wheelbarrow and pushed her 9km to the closest health centre in the neighbouring village of Regent. She lost the baby. "This is what happens to most of our sick people. Especially those who fall severely sick in the night - look at the road", said village leader Conteh, pointing at a dusty rocky dirt path, "How can you carry someone in the middle of the night along this road?"
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