MEDICAL CARE

THE FACTS:

  1. Less than 16% of births in Ethiopia are attended by a skilled health worker. By comparison, 99% of U.S. births are attended by a skilled health worker.

  2. About 1 in 17 Ethiopian children will die before their 5th birthday. More than 40% of those deaths occur in the first four weeks.

  3. A woman in Ethiopia has a 1 in 238 chance of dying in childbirth compared to 1 in 4,000 in a developed country.

  4. About 80% of diseases in Ethiopia are attributable to preventable conditions related to infectious diseases, malnutrition, and personal and environmental hygiene.

  5. Cataract is the leading cause of preventable blindness in Ethiopia, with rates of cataract in rural Ethiopia reaching 2.4%.

  6. Nearly 50% of blindness cases and 41% of low vision cases in Ethiopia are due to cataract that can be surgically treated.

Sources:  Global Health Observatory; Maternal Mortality Estimation Inter-Agency Group; World Health Organization; Ethiopian Journal of Health Development

 
 
Photo courtesy of Liz Hale

Photo courtesy of Liz Hale

MATERNAL, NEWBORN, AND CHILD HEALTH

WEEMA strengthens health systems through education, medical equipment, physician support, and innovative mobile technologies- all with the goal to reduce maternal, infant and child mortality.     

 

EYE CARE SERVICES

WEEMA hosts surgical campaigns to help reduce blindness and low vision through curative procedures. To date, WEEMA has completed five of these campaigns in two hospitals - helping restore vision to over 4,000 people!