Bringing good health & nutrition to children affected by floods in Laos

By Simon Nazer

Carrots diced, onions sliced and pumpkins quartered – mothers in Oudomxay camp, Lao PDR are learning how to prepare nutritious food that’ll help them and their children thrive. Floods in Lao PDR last month left 4,000 people homeless and in temporary shelters. With crops and cattle destroyed, the food situation has become critical and children are often among the first to suffer.

Today, mothers  in Oudomxay camp are being taught how to prepare healthy food by two trainers from the Provincial Nutrition Team. “We’re preparing food for children who were affected by the flood,” says the head of that team, Ms. Vilaysan.

“During the flood, there was little access to food, particularly nutritious food like this. We’re taking this opportunity to give them a healthy meal and teach the families about healthy eating, using locally grown and available food.”

For one of the mothers, Southa, it’s a valuable learning experience. “This is the first time I’ve had a chance to learn about healthy food,” she says. “Before I just cooked traditional food and didn’t know about mixing different types of foods to help children develop, it’s great to learn about this.”

Funding from MMG and the European Union, have made it possible for UNICEF to support the provincial team with Infant and Young Child Feeding training. Because of this support, health workers and health volunteers have the knowledge and skills needed to counsel mothers on how to prepare healthy meals for their children by mixing different varieties of vegetables and proteins that will  help children develop. It’s particularly important to maintain a healthy diet during emergencies when children can be vulnerable to disease and illness.

“We’ve done an assessment and it’s clear that children have been affected by the flood and need this support,” says Ms. Vilaysan. “There’s always a risk of their health declining so it’s important we ensure they’re provided with healthy food, in a sustainable way.”

The toll of the flood

In nearby Sanamxai District Hospital, the toll of the flood on children is only too clear. Since the flood, referrals have skyrocketed to the point where a temporary shelter was built in the hospital yard – using a UNICEF tarpaulin – to handle the additional patients.

One such case is 2-year-old Vanly (name changed). She lays in a bed barely conscious with a drip taped to her tiny arm with some cardboard for support. On each bed around her, another child lays with a drip feeding into their arm, with their worried parents watching over them.

“She had diarrhoea for ten days and the drugs weren’t helping,” said her mother as she sat by her bed nursing her weak child. “My village was affected by the flood and we moved to the camp. Since then, I noticed Vanly getting weaker and sicker. The doctor sent us here when the medicine wasn’t working.”

Sadly, this can be a common sight during emergencies: with less healthy food and without access to clean water and sanitation facilities, children increasingly fall sick and find it difficult to get back to good health.

“We’ve been here for a day and I don’t know how long we’ll be here for,” says Vanly’s mother. “I just hope she’s feeling better soon.”

For this reason, UNICEF is prioritising nutrition screening of children in camps, treatment of malnutrition cases and the promotion of breastfeeding. Ready-to-use therapeutic food and micro-nutrient supplements have also be delivered on the ground to help undernourished children get back to health.

UNICEF is supporting the Ministry of Health (MoH) to disseminate key messages on the prevention and management of diarrhoea, and on which danger signs to look for when children are sick that warrant immediate health care. Job aids for health workers have been developed and distributed to ensure lifesaving commodities such as zinc tablets are given with Oral rehydration solution to all children for treatment of diarrhoea, which can reduce the duration and severity of diarrhoea as well as improve their immunity.

Keeping disease and illness in check

MOH, with the support of UNICEF and WHO is delivering Cholera vaccinations, along with other routine vaccinations, to those in affected areas. The infectious disease can quickly spread during flood emergencies. It can cause severe diarrhoea which can lead to dehydration and even death if left untreated.

In addition, UNICEF staff are on the ground ensuring that children are receiving the recommended vaccinations against other preventable diseases such as measles, polio, diphtheria and tetanus.

For mothers like Southa, seeing services and support for her and her children is making a big difference while they come to terms with the disaster. “It’s a difficult time,” she says. “Any help we get to keep the children safe and healthy is good for us.”

UNICEF continues to work around the clock to deliver for children affected by the floods in Lao PDR.