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“Red Mami”: a network to support teenage mothers
In Peru teenage pregnancy is a national concern. In San Juan de Lurigancho, the most populated and among the poorest districts of Peru, the number of pregnancies among girls from 11 to 19 years of age is threefold that of the rest of the country (1 100 teenagers living in the district are hospitalized each year at the Maternity of Lima, either for delivery or for a pregnancy complication). For this reason and at the request of the Peruvian Association Taller de Los Ninos (http://www.tallerdelosninos.org.pe), Children Action decided to support the project RED MAMI which offers a multidisciplinary assistance for these young mothers.
 
To surround, guide and protect in order to offer a better future
The Red Mami’s team works in close collaboration with the Institut Materno Périnatal of Lima and with the 34 health centers of the district of San Juan de Lurigancho to which teenagers are addressed after giving birth at the maternity.
  
Every mother is thus taken in charge and receives the following support:
Legal and social assistance
1. The right to an identity: of the mother, the father and the baby.
2. Free access to health insurance at the nearest medical centre to the teenage mother's home.
3. Help in going back to school
4. Follow-up on legal formalities and prevention of violence and child abuse.
Strengthening of maternal and family bonds
1. The mother/baby relationship
2. The relationship with the family
Prevention and health assistance
1. Childhood vaccination and developpement
2. Prevention of a second pregnancy
3. Medical follow-up during pregnancy
A psychological assistance and specific care are offered to mothers less than 15 years of age.
Thanks to this framework, the teenage mothers’ abilities are strengthened, their social and schooling integration improved, the mother/baby bond is reinforced and the development of the baby is assisted.
First results
Since the beginning of the network in 2009, 1'509 teenage mothers and 1'292 babies have been registered and assisted within the project Red Mami.
The Cost
Annual budget : CHF 91'000 (€ 65 000)
Team
Project leader:
Christiane Ramseyer, Founder and President of Taller de Los Ninos
Supervision:
Prof François Ansermet, Head of the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University Hospital, Geneva
Ricardo Gorodisch, psychiatrist and President of Kaleidos
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