Health workers stay close to each village, improving meals for poor children

Bringing nutrition to children in difficult areas

In the sweltering heat, Ms. Huynh Thi Dinh (nutrition officer at My Thanh health station, Ham Thanh commune, Lam Dong province) and nutrition collaborators continued their familiar journey carrying scales, charts, and micronutrient supplement packages to each remote village and households with malnourished children.

This trip of the delegation went to village 1, My Thanh commune (old), this is the main place where the Rac Lay ethnic minority people live, economic conditions are still difficult, the rate of malnourished children is still higher than the average of the province.

Regardless of the distance, the grassroots health workers went to each household, checked the children's growth charts, and guided people on how to choose locally available foods to prepare nutritious and safe meals for their children. "Many families think that children only need to be full, and do not pay attention to nutrition. We have to go to their homes to guide and analyze so that they understand and do the right thing," Ms. Dinh shared.

With the motto of "going to every alley, knocking on every door, checking every subject", medical staff not only propagate but also organize sample cooking sessions, instruct on child care skills, and prevent acute malnutrition. Primitive tools, local foods such as wild vegetables, stream fish, and garden fruits and vegetables are all used as examples to show people that nutrition is not something far-fetched or expensive.

“To achieve the goal of reducing the rate of malnourished children, we regularly measure height and weight, provide nutritional advice through vaccination sessions, prenatal check-ups and on the radio in remote communes,” said Ms. Dinh.

In addition, inter-sectoral coordination programs have also been implemented: providing free milk and micronutrient supplements to children in poor and near-poor households; training for village health workers to promptly detect and support children with signs of malnutrition. Each case of severely malnourished children has its own management record and is closely monitored.

Reduce the rate of stunted children

Ms. Le Thi Chung (a resident of Ham Thanh commune, Lam Dong province) has a child under 1 year old. Previously, she thought that stunted growth was "predestined" and did not require intervention. She also believed that children should avoid nutritious foods because of traditional beliefs. However, through perseverance and closeness, medical staff gradually changed her perception. Now Ms. Chung knows how to use locally available foods to supplement adequate nutrition for her child.

“Before, I mainly cooked porridge with meat and not much variety. Thanks to the guidance from the medical staff, I followed it to supplement my child with adequate nutrients. Now when I cook porridge for my child, I also cook it with meat, fish, crab and vegetables, the proportions are also calculated,” said Ms. Chung.

Not only Ms. Chung, many other women also changed the way they raised their children. They actively breastfed their children and enthusiastically participated in propaganda sessions organized by medical facilities.

After more than two years of implementing sub-project 2 of project 3 of the National Target Program on Sustainable Poverty Reduction (2021-2025 period), the situation of child malnutrition in many communes managed by Ham Thuan Nam Medical Center has had positive changes. In 2024, 118 children under 5 years old with stunted malnutrition were supplemented with multi-micronutrients and 181 women with children under 5 years old received nutrition counseling. To date, the rate of stunted malnutrition in children under 5 years old in the area has decreased to 10%. Some areas such as My Thanh, Ham Can... have gradually narrowed the gap with the general rural areas of the province.

“Bringing nutrition to the village is not an easy journey, but it is also a testament to the efforts of the local health sector in ensuring the right to comprehensive development of poor children. We are currently planning for implementation in the following years when funding from the National Target Program for Sustainable Poverty Reduction (2021-2025) is allocated to the center. The goal is to improve nutrition and physical health for children with difficult economic conditions,” said Ms. Pham Thi Phuong (medical staff at Ham Thuan Nam Medical Center, Lam Dong province).

Source: https://tienphong.vn/can-bo-y-te-bam-tung-thon-cai-thien-bua-an-cho-tre-em-ngheo-post1764753.tpo