Trip to the Nutrition Clinic in Kebbi State

With some time to spare before beginning my return journey to Canada I had the opportunity to join the MSF nutrition team working in Kebbi State for a two-day trip. We travelled to the southern part of the state, crossed the Niger River, and stayed a few kilometers from the border with the Republic of Benin. Otherwise, I have no idea where we were and I wondered how MSF found this place to begin with.

This region had been hit hard this past year by both a late harvest and a measles epidemic. These factors contributed to a high rate of malnutrition amongst younger children. MSF has been running a and feeding program, which will be handed-over next spring to the Ministry of Health and another NGO.

When we arrived at our first stop, the town of Giris, there was already a gathering of about 40 mothers, grandmothers, or older siblings with babies wrapped on their backs. People were relaxed and proceeded in an orderly fashion through the stations:

• First the baby was put in the scale to be weighed. You could always count on this creating a great cry and one had to watch for a potential escapee or a stream of pee.
• If they were visiting for the first time their height was measured so that it could be seen if their weight was sufficient for their given height. This was another unpopular step, from the baby’s perspective.
• The baby then had their temperature taken. If it was high they would then be tested for malaria. If they had malaria they would then be given medicine. I was told that of the sick children brought in that over 70% had malaria and about 50% were malnourished.
• The mothers would then sit with the doctor to review the tests, discuss the child’s recovery program, and prescribe what food and medicine would be needed.
• The mothers then would pick-up the supplies, wrap the baby in a blanket around her back, put the supplies on her head, and begin her trip home until the next week’s meeting.

The basis of the nutrition program is Plumpy'nut, which is a fortified peanut butter stuffed with milk and vitamins. It is great for this type of work because it requires no water preparation or refrigeration and has a 2 year shelf life.

The MSF team consisted of Beinfait, a doctor from the Congo, and a variety of medical staff from Nigeria. They quite enjoy the work because they see the results of their efforts so quickly. Usually within a month a child can be back in good health, which I’m sure makes up for travelling to where-ever it was that we were.