Higher Life Expectancy in Afghanistan

http://www.npr.org/2014/02/04/269551459/an-afghan-success-story-fewer-child-deaths

Afghanistan's Ministry of Public Health along with NGOs run and administer free clinics, which has resulted in 80% of the population having access to health care.The average life expectancy has gone up by 17 years (from 45 to 62) because more children are living passed the age of five. In 2001, 1 in every 4 children died by the age of 5. However, recent studies have shown that 1 in every ten children now dies by the age of 5. This is a dramatic increase as a result of better access to healthcare. I am completing my practice experience at a free clinic here in Berkeley, and it just goes to show that clinics like these are absolutely necessary. However one small point that this argument makes that struck me the most, was that a lot of people in Afghanistan, and other developing countries for that matter, are having a hard time letting go of tradition. It seems like this has been a recurring theme in many discussions. NGOs can go into countries and try to deliver services or resources that they lacked, but if the population doesn't want to accept them, they won't be effective. The woman in this article for example, explains that her mother-in-law would abandon her if she gave birth at one of these clinics rather than her own home. Without the proper care in a hospital, the baby risks losing his/her life. It is important for NGOs to realize that people may not be comfortable with what we find normal, like delivering our babies in a hospital, and that if they are uncomfortable, they won't accept the services NGOs offer. It's interesting for me to think about ways to incorporate"modern" methods with traditional ones. Maybe there is a way that can make both parties happy, so that underserved families don't feel like they have to give up their own traditions and values. In this case, it could be possible for the clinic to set up a program in which they don't force women in labor to come to the clinic, but rather send a doctor or nurse to the home to assist the mother in birth.