The sexual and reproductive health department in Kakamega has established a young mothers' club at the county general hospital in the fight against rising teenage pregnancies.
Young mothers’ clubs, made up of girls aged 24 years and below, have been formed in various parts of the county. They are part of an intervention by the county government to address the rising cases of teenage pregnancy.
The aim of setting up a young mothers' club at the hospital is to teach pregnant teenagers and young mothers about family planning and the use of contraceptive services when they attend antenatal clinics.
“We need to educate our young daughters with the help of their parents to embrace contraceptives as a way of arresting the rising cases of early pregnancies,” county reproductive health coordinator Amelda Barasa said.
Statistics by the department show that 8,000 cases of teenage pregnancy were recorded in the county between January and June. This translates into an average of 44 girls being impregnated daily in the county.
According to the report, 960 cases were recorded in teenagers between 10 and 14, while 7,040 were girls aged between 15 and 18. The county reported 17,000 cases of teen pregnancies in 2018.
“Teenage pregnancy is a crisis, given that most of the affected are schoolgirls. We expect the numbers to go down this year since children are back to school, unlike last year when learners were home longer following the long coronavirus occasioned-holiday,” Barasa said.
She said most of the girls are impregnated by relatives or people known to them.
Barasa said most families had yet to accept the use of contraceptives because of misinformation and myths around their use.
Hassan Nyahonga, a family reproductive and maternal health expert under ‘Boresha Afya’ programme, said teenage pregnancy is the main cause of girls dropping out of school.
“This has forced us to teach and take the girls through various health education programmes so that they can take care of themselves and their babies and go back to school," Nyahonga said.
“Some young mothers are 10 years old. If we do not reach out to them through programmes such as the young mothers club across the 12 subcounties, then their lives will be in danger.”
He said cases of premature deliveries involving teenagers are on the rise.
“Premature infants are delicate and require special attention. This can be a burden to young mothers and we must work together in sensitising our young girls," Nyahonga said.
Edited by A.N
