BY MILDRED NDUM WUNG KUM
The NGO Rural Women Center for Education and Development RuWCED- Cameroon has in a seminar equipped health workers, peer educators, counsellors and religious leaders with knowledge on abortion including the national and international law regulating abortion, the consequences of unsafe abortion and the right approach on post abortion care. The session took place at the MINEPAT conference hall, Up Station Bamenda
According to the Outreach Coordinator of RuWCED Leboh Samuel, the seminar was organised based on the high occurance of abortion and related consequences including ignorance about the law regulating abortion.
It is on this note that resource persons were invited to the seminar to give knowledge to participants. He said the aim is to safe live noting that issues on post abortion are challenging.
According to Barrister Fonsoh Germaine, an abortion in Cameroon can only be carried out in case the client’s health is in grave danger and in case the pregnancy resulted from rape in which case must be proven true by the law court. “Anything outside these two situations renders abortion illegal which is punishable by the law” she noted.
Participants were made to understand the different methods of contraception and the implications. Speaking to participants at the workshop on unsafe abortion, a reproductive Health Nurse Anota Grace said unsafe abortion can pose dangers like bleeding, anemia, sepsis, infertility or death.
Informed that many persons suffering from after abortion problems are reproached than helped , health workers at the workshop were told to be none judgemental when handling cases on post abortion complications but to be humane in administering health care and more over to stick to ethics of the profession.
All participants that turned out at the workshop appreciated the training. “this is what we need to have. It is not different from what we learned in school but we need to refresh and update ourselves so I’m so grateful for RuWCED” noted Ndah Miriah, a midwife and nurse at the Babungo intergrated Health Center.
Also present at the seminar were Lovees Ahfembombi, Rabiatou Aliyu
and Loveline Yimsta who are all staff of RuWCED. They facilitated for a smooth flow of the session.
The Rural Women Center for Education and Development RuWCED is a none profit making grass root organization that works to promote the health, education, livelihoods, human rights and development of rural women, youths and children.