Mothers Waiting Hostel

In 2008, the Bwindi Community Hospital (BCH) established a Mothers’ Waiting Hostel (MWH) with the aim of increasing institutional deliveries; reducing obstetric delays; and improving maternal and perinatal outcomes in the region.

The hostel was fully integrated into the hospital, so that all existing services could be accessible to pregnant women in the hostel including medical care, surgery, community outreach, the insurance program, and mental health services.

The waiting mothers’ home is able to accommodate 42 mothers at a time. The criteria for mothers admitted to the MWH includes mothers identified to be at a high risk irrespective of where they come from, those that come from very far from the health facility estimated to be a distance greater than 25km and those that are 38 weeks of gestation or more. Mothers in the MWH are seen by a medical doctor for any concerns on daily basis.

In 2020, we came up with an idea of equipping these mothers with various skills that bring opportunities and income generation such as tailoring, weaving, and knitting. The mothers are then able to make Baby dresses and napkins, re-usable sanitary pads, baby blankets and clothes, baskets, and other handcraft materials. These products will not only be sold in the local markets but also availed to tourists at different partner lodge gift shops.