A 20 km walk to healthcare
Viola* is a mother of three children. Read her story:
Before Dandelion Africa started the Backpack Nurse outreach site near my village, I had to travel to Marigat Sub-county Hospital whenever I needed health services. The hospital is 20km from my home along a red dirt road, walking in temperatures reaching more than 40 degrees Celsius. It serves people from the whole sub-county.
When I reached the hospital, I often found very long queues, especially at the maternal and child health clinic. There were many mothers waiting for immunisation and family planning services. Sometimes I spent the whole day waiting to be served. There were also times when I travelled all the way but could not get the family planning service I needed because of the large number of patients.
Getting healthcare was tiring, expensive and time-consuming.
Viola and one of her children
When Dandelion Africa started the Backpack Nurse outreach site, I began receiving my health services there.
The outreach site is close to my home, so I no longer have to travel long distances or spend the whole day at the hospital. The clinic mainly serves mothers from our community, so we are attended to much faster.
I was able to continue receiving family planning services and take my children for immunisation without the stress of travelling to the hospital.
Today, accessing healthcare is much easier.
All my three children have received their full immunisation schedule through the outreach site. I also receive my family planning services there. When I decide to have another child, I can have my family planning method removed, and after giving birth, I can easily receive another method.
A mother and her child at a Backpack Nurse site
The outreach clinic has given me the freedom to plan my family while making sure my children stay healthy.
I now spend less time looking for healthcare and more time caring for my family. Having health services close to home has made a big difference in my life. With a long-term contraceptive I can plan and space my pregnancies. My children are healthier because they have received all their recommended vaccines and I have more time to care for my family’s livestock.
Viola is one of many mothers accessing integrated maternal and child health services through Dandelion Africa's Backpack Nurse outreach site in Salabani. The outreach model brings immunisation, family planning, antenatal care, and other essential health services closer to underserved communities, reducing travel time, long waiting hours, and missed opportunities for healthcare.
*Not her real name
A Backpack Nurse visiting a client at their home