RMF UNICEF Integrated MNCH and PMTCT in Ayod and Pibor Counties

Real Medicine Foundation has been working in South Sudan since 2009, when we initiated and cofounded Juba College of Nursing and Midwifery (JCONAM), the first accredited college of its kind in South Sudan. Through JCONAM and other programs, we provide health education and support as the country struggles to rebuild after decades of civil war. After the last conflict of mid-December 2013, in early July 2016, fighting broke out again in the capital city of Juba. Despite the increasing violence, scarcity of food, and financial instability (as of January 2017, inflation reached 900%), RMF has maintained a strong presence in South Sudan, fighting as best we can to preserve the health and dignity of South Sudanese, especially mothers and children. One of our main goals is to help lower the country’s maternal mortality rate (the highest in the world) and infant mortality rate (one of the highest in the world).

In September 2016, RMF South Sudan began a new program, entering into a partnership agreement with UNICEF to rejuvenate the primary healthcare centers in Gorwai and Pibor in order to provide quality MNCH (maternal, neonatal, and child health) and PMTCT (prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV) services. By providing access to health services, medicine, immunization, and health education, RMF seeks to significantly improve the health and wellbeing of communities in these areas.

• Remodel, reopen, and maintain primary healthcare centers in Gorwai and Pibor
• Provide quality MNCH and PMTCT services:
  • Micronutrients and malnutrition screening for children and pregnant and lactating women
  • Vaccines for children under 5 and pregnant and lactating women
  • Screening of pregnant women for STIs, especially HIV/AIDS
  • Health education
• Provide quality primary healthcare services to the general population
• Support and build capacity of the County Health Departments (CHD)

• High level of food insecurity
• High level of inflation
• Lack of infrastructure
• Security risks

In partnering with UNICEF to rehabilitate the primary healthcare centers of Gorwai and Pibor and provide integrated, quality MNCH and PMTCT services to the population, RMF seeks to improve the overall health and wellbeing of the communities in Ayod and Pibor counties and further our long-term goal, in line with South Sudan’s Ministry of Health, to lower maternal and infant mortality rates.