A gap between urban and rural areas with serious health consequences
Project members involved in the mobile healthcare field clinic service
Located in the Mandalay Region of Northern Myanmar, Bagan is a UNESCO World Heritage site and home to thousands of ancient Buddhist temples and pagodas. The nearby town of Nyaung-U has an airport and intercity bus terminal, as well as hotels and restaurants for the many tourists who visit the area. However, once leaving the town center, one encounters low-income farming villages where the local people live and work. Rural life here seems tranquil, yet a major problem lies beneath the surface: it is very difficult in this region for mothers to give birth safely and raise healthy children. This issue is one example of the wide gap in healthcare quality between urban and rural areas in Myanmar, which results in double the rate of infant and child mortality in the countryside. The main healthcare facilities for the Mandalay region are located in the center of urban areas, while 70 percent of the population lives in outlying villages. For their healthcare, mothers and children depend on rural health centers located in the villages. Those living further out in the countryside must rely on sub-rural health centers, which offer a limited range of services. Rural healthcare workers are limited in terms of both sheer numbers and training the workers receive, and sub-rural health centers typically have only one midwife on staff and are ill-equipped to fully meet women’s healthcare needs. In sum, access to higher-quality healthcare is a pressing concern to the people of the region.
Enhancing healthcare human resources to improve mother-child health
Since 2019, Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd. and Plan International, an international NGO active in over 70 countries worldwide, have been partnering to improve mother-child health in the rural villages surrounding Nyaung-U. Our three-year project includes three key initiatives: visits by mobile healthcare clinics, training for healthcare professionals and volunteers, and health education for mothers. The kickoff ceremony for the project was held in October 2019 in a village located about an hour and a half by car from central Nyaung-U. Afterward, Jun Yamamoto of the Daiichi Sankyo Sustainability Promotion Department commented, “It was great to see so many local residents here, including many mothers holding their infants, as well as a large number of national and local government officials. From the number of people in attendance and the speeches they gave, I sensed firsthand the enthusiasm and expectations for this project.”
Medical staff taking blood samples from an expecting mother to test for anemia
The mobile healthcare clinics make their rounds once per month, allowing a doctor and a nurse to visit multiple villages. These mobile healthcare clinics coordinate with rural and sub-rural health centers to provide prenatal care to pregnant women and health checks to children under the age of five years. The clinic vehicles are also able to transport women who are about to give birth and require emergency services.Focusing on nutrition and personal health management, the health education program is for both expecting mothers and those who are nursing. The nutrition guidance includes the use of local ingredients and provides recipes that help mothers wean children in a nutritious, healthy way. This program also helps local healthcare professionals increase their knowledge and skills.Talking about the future of the program, Osamu Watanabe of the Daiichi Sankyo Sustainability Promotion Department notes, “Currently, our project is sustained by a doctor, a nurse, and other members with a wealth of practical experience in public hygiene. Even after the project is finished, we believe they will continue to lead the villages of the region in maintaining sustainable, independent mother-child healthcare programs.”The project, which provided healthcare support to some 20 villages in its first year, will grow to include a total of 55 villages by the time it is completed.
A global, sustainable plan to improve healthcare access
In its current Mid-term Plan, Daiichi Sankyo includes “improving access to healthcare” as one of its sustainability priority areas. To this end, since 2011 the company has begun mother-child healthcare projects in five countries: Cameroon, Tanzania, India, China, and, most recently, Myanmar. Moreover, Plan International is working in Myanmar to alleviate the growing crises affecting Rohingya refugee families, and Daiichi Sankyo is also contributing to these efforts.Adopted by all United Nations Member States in September 2015, the UN Sustainable Development Goals include Goal 3, “Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages,” which in turn includes targets related to “reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health.” Daiichi Sankyo mother-child healthcare projects are designed to improve maternal, newborn, and child health and are guided by specific numerical objectives for each initiative they include.Through its mother-child healthcare projects like the one in the Mandalay Region of Northern Myanmar, Daiichi Sankyo aims not only to improve access to healthcare but also to raise healthcare awareness and train and develop healthcare professionals. The end goal is to help mothers and children be healthy and live with peace of mind. Looking ahead as well, as a pharmaceutical company that seeks to protect the lives and health of people everywhere, Daiichi Sankyo will continue to engage in healthcare projects focused on low-to-middle-income countries, thereby contributing to the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.