MSF intensifies fight against child malnutrition in Bauchi

Segun Babatunde Awofadeji, Bauchi

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), also known as “Doctors Without Borders”, has continued to make  significant impact in Bauchi State, providing free medical services to 2,000 children between ages 1 month to 15 years every month.

The humanitarian Organization support the Bauchi State government to respond  malnutrition cases  and vaccine preventable diseases.

The Project Medical Preferent MSF Bauchi, Dr. Claude Bitaronga,  shared the organization’sactivities   during a media visit to  the MSF Pediatric hospital in Kafin Madaki Ganjuwa Local government area of Bauchi State organized by  Journalists for Public Health and Development Initiative (J4PD), yesterday .

Dr Claude Bitaronga said the organization provides a wide range of services to hundreds of children who come in with severe acute malnutrition and other complications.

According to him,  “Patients who pass by this hospital are being referred from Primary Health Care Centers within the State and neighboring Jigawa and Plateau states and others come based on information they receive about services that MSF provides”.

He said the patients coming into the trage area on a daily basis are between 70- 80 on a regular period and 100 during peak period which starts from April to July.

“In the two years now that is 2024/2025 we have recorded increase in patients flow during the months of April to July which is why we had to expand our bed capacity from 250 to 350 to accomodate all who need stabilisation “.

The MSF Isolation Center offers comprehensive care, including three free meals daily for both children and their caregivers. Essential supplies such as sanitary items, drugs, and laboratory investigations are provided at no cost.

” MSF also provides Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) tailored to each child’s age and weight to help in their recovery. Children who have been stabilized are referred to one of the organization’s ATF centers where they  continue with their treatment”.

Dr Claude Bitaronga added that MSF has introduced Para- Muac a strategy where community health workers train parents and caregivers on how to screen their children for malnutrition.

“Today these parents can use the Mid-Upper Arm Circumference tape ( Muac) very well that when they come to the hospital the readings are accurate in most cases”.

The hospital he stated also has a health promotion and community engagement unit that links community to the hospital and create awareness about services being provided and what is expected from community members.

In an interview with Musa Damsari, a father of a child on admission from Kirfi Local Government Area, said his 18-month-old son had swelling and diarrhea and that they had visited other hospitals before coming to Kafin Madaki.

” I see improvement in my son’s condition and I am happy,We had previously given him traditional herbs, but the care here made all the difference.”

To Aisha Mohammed from Ningi Local Government area she noted that after just nine days of treatment, the swelling on her two years old son has reduced by 90%.

” The free meals, protein-rich foods, and RUTF helped a lot.”

MSF’s commitment extends beyond healthcare provision. While the original Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between MSF and the Ministry of Health outlined a 50-50 personnel contribution, MSF currently provides 80% of the doctors, with the state supplying only 20%. The Ministry of Health has contributed the majority of nursing staff, while MSF handles the remaining 20%.

The humanitarian Organization also provides mental health services to mothers.

” When a child is malnourished it affects the family and most especially the mother so we provide her with psycho social support”.

As MSF continues its efforts in Bauchi, the organization is not only providing immediate medical care but also building long-term capacity in the local community to improve health outcomes for future generations. END