Photo: UNDP Moldova

Future parents from Criuleni and Dubasari districts can now enjoy access to perinatal assistance.  A Pre- and Postnatal School was opened at the Criuleni district Hospital, which also covers the communities of the Dubasari district. The idea was inspired by the Health Information and Communication Center (HICC) and was implemented thanks to EU financing offered through the Support to Confidence Building Measures Programme implemented by the UNDP.

Pregnant women and their partners will attend the school to learn how pregnancy evolves, what physiological and psychological changes happen during pregnancy, so as will learn exercises and techniques to reduce the level of pain during birth.

“Pregnant women will learn to recognize changes in their body and how fetus develops through each trimester of pregnancy; they will know differences between a natural childbirth and a Caesarean section, about sources and levels of pain in labor; they will study principles of healthy lifestyle during pregnancy and after birth; they will learn about breast-feeding, personal and child’s hygiene, alarm signs in a child’s psychological development in the first year of life. Once a week, the School will organize sessions for pregnant women and their partners wishing to witness childbirth,” notes Lilia Onea, HICC founder.

Annually, about 400 women give birth at Criuleni maternity. The number of deliveries might double within two years, according to the director of the district Hospital, Nicolae Croitor: “The professionalism of prenatal caregivers could motivate future parents in the district to deliver their child in this hospital, close to their home.”

Criuleni district Hospital offered space for the Pre- and Postnatal school. Various support specialists who will conduct lectures for future parents were trained, with support from the EU: a psychologist, a gynecologist and a neonatologist. Also, teaching materials, furniture, a dummy, two demonstration boards, and equipment for birth preparation exercises were procured.

The School was funded through a large-scale Programme financed by the EU aiming to build confidence between the two banks of the Nistru River. Thanks to the EU support, a Pre- and Postnatal School will soon resume its activities at the Mother and Child Center (MCC) in Tiraspol.

“On a personal note as a father of 4 healthy children and husband of a healthy wife, I feel privileged that everything went well for my family and believe me that I have personally experienced the importance of Pre- and Postnatal care and assistance close to the families and women's’ homes. Secondly, as representative of the EU, I am pleased to see that our support serves the real and concrete needs of the population, to improve their day-to-day life, and in this case to help that things go well for many Moldovan families, such as it did for mine,” mentioned Marco Gemmer, Head of Operations Section at the EU Delegation in the Republic of Moldova.

“Just like our colleagues in Criuleni, we will do our best to ensure that pregnancy, delivery and the first year of a child’s life are remembered by pregnant women and their families as a positive experience,” said Natalia Slepuha, Director of MCC in Tiraspol.

A first lesson for future mothers was organized by the School right on the inauguration day. “Our first feelings are very positive. If I had the opportunity to learn about these things before I had my first child, I could have avoided many awkward situations,” tells Elena Rusu from Criuleni.

The Pre- and Postnatal School in Criuleni was launched in the framework of a project implemented by the Health Information and Communication Center in partnership with the Mother and Child Center from Tiraspol and Criuleni district Hospital. This cooperation was possible under the EU-funded Support to Confidence Building Measures Programme implemented by the UNDP.