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Support Group launched to empower, educate teen moms
By Enid Joaquin
A Teen Pregnancy Support Group was on Friday launched at the Vivienne Parris Health Centre in Linden, to empower and educate teen mothers. Eight such young women received support packages from the group.
It was one of several other similar groups being launched countrywide, to support, educate and empower pregnant teens.
Cilandell Glen, the Sexual Reproductive Health Coordinator, within the adolescent Health Unit of the Ministry of Public Health, said that the initiative was introduced to Region 10 stakeholders two weeks ago.
It is an initiative of the Ministry of Public Health adolescent unit, Glen said.
She noted that the main aim of the programme is to help reduce teenage pregnancy, which is a ‘big issue’ in Guyana.
Glen added that the initiative was a spin-off of the youth friendly services, which included the antenatal teen clinics for the adolescent population, which commenced in 2014.
The support group, she said, is to offer psychosocial and social support to teenage pregnant mothers.
The young, expectant mothers learn the importance of nutrition, exercising and the labour process, among other things, Glen said
Noting that teen pregnancy is as a result of risky sexual behaviour, which is due to a lack of knowledge, Glen said that part of the Department’s objective is to educate adolescent mothers to help prevent them from becoming pregnant for a second time.
“Out of the support Group, the adolescent mothers could actually do talks in our Secondary Schools to share their experiences with other young girls about teenage pregnancy, including the risk of getting pregnant at such a young age. So we’re hoping that the clinics, and especially the support groups, would help in the fight to reduce teenage pregnancy in Guyana.”
A section of the audience at the launch
of the Teen support Group in Linden
Glen said that the initiative is a countrywide one, and other groups were recently established at Mocha/Herstelling, Grove, Sophia and other health centres in Georgetown.
She said that the initiative will also be extended to regions one, five and six.
Glen emphasized that the aim of the support groups is not to support teenage pregnancy, but assist the mothers who might not be in a financial position to take care of their needs.
“We would tell people that, because oftentimes the teen mothers are no longer in a relationship with the father of their child, we offer the support so that they would not be forced into further risky behaviour to provide for the unborn child. So it’s not teenage pregnancy that we are supporting but rather the young mothers who quite often cannot provide for themselves or the child.
Jenelle Sweatnam, of the Ministry of Education, said that it was a care initiative that saw that Ministry collaborating with the Ministry of Public Health. According to Sweatnam, the teen mothers care packages was started in 2014, but in 2016 they collaborated with the Ministry of Public Health, to reach a wider community as the teen mothers have to visit the health clinics.
“So we’re targeting the teen moms to let them know about the reintegration programme that the Ministry has, so that after they would have given birth, they can continue their education.”
Sweatnam stressed that the reintegration programme is one that has always been embraced by the Ministry of Education.
Because, she pointed out, teen moms are very vulnerable due to financial constraints, and very often engage in risky behaviour. Thus the aim of the reintegration programme, she stressed, is to empower the teen moms by equipping them with the necessary skills, so that they could be independent and support their newborn.
Dr Salome Henry, who is attached to the One Mile Health Centre, called the initiative a good one. Henry said that adolescent mothers need all the support that could be given.
The mother of a daughter who got pregnant at sixteen, Henry said that though she was annoyed with her for getting pregnant while still at school, she offered her the needed support. She proudly noted that today her daughter is back in school.
“I would definitely support a teenage mother, but I don’t support teenage pregnancy,” Dr Henry stressed.
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