“It is like the drama we watched worked like magic”
A story of community change from Cross River state
I am a retired civil servant. Before retirement, I was working in the Office of the Accountant General in Calabar. I am 61 years old and presently not married. I lost my wife five years ago but before she died, I had twelve children from her. The youngest child is 10 years old now.
In our community, husbands used to show very little concern for their wives even during pregnancy. As a result, wives did plenty of work. Some are poorly fed because they have to fend for themselves despite the fact that they are married. No one cares about their health as long as they can accomplish what is required of them.
Generally, pregnant women need care. Some fortunate ones marry good husbands and so they enjoy care. Others are less fortunate and they pass through difficult times. This group of wives usually does very hard labour to earn a living. Due to this hardship, they would not register for antenatal care or go to the health centre to get treatment because they feared that they may not get money to pay the bill. Secondly, because they aren’t registered for antenatal care, the pregnant women do not have the courage to go to our health centre during labour for delivery. They prefer to give birth at home. Many of them suffered complications in the process because they used treatments that affected their system and even the unborn baby.
To me, it is like the drama we watched worked like magic. Women now realise what needs to be done. Once pregnant, they avoid doing things that will affect their pregnancy. The lessons they learned through watching the drama have helped them to reduce hard work during pregnancy. I have heard a nurse in the health centre commending the general change in attitude of our women towards health care. She said pregnant women now report promptly to the health centre for advice whenever they notice signs that the drama said are dangerous. I have also observed that pregnant women in the community are now willingly go to the health centre for treatment and antenatal care. Husbands are also aware of correct health practices and they encourage and support their wives. This has prevented deaths and women no longer suffer like before.
Return to the voices page or to the most significant change page.