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'My baby would have died if I had stayed in Venezuela'

News imageNacho Doce/REUTERS Carla, 18, a Venezuelan pregnant woman, poses before she gave birth to her baby at a maternity hospital in Boa Vista, Roraima state, Brazil, 21 August 2018.Nacho Doce/REUTERS
Births of Venezuelan babies at the maternity hospital in the Brazilian city of Boa Vista have surged as Venezuelan mothers increasingly leave their home country to give birth in the neighbouring country.
News imageNacho Doce/REUTERS Carmen Jimenez, 33, a Venezuelan from Bolivar state, holds her four-day-old baby Amalia at a maternity hospital in Boa Vista, Roraima state, Brazil, 21 August 2018Nacho Doce/REUTERS
In the first half of 2018, 571 Venezuelan were born here compared with 288 in 2016, according to the Roraima state health department.
News imageNacho Doce/REUTERS Cecilia, a Venezuelan woman holds her baby at a maternity hospital in Boa Vista,Nacho Doce/REUTERS
The massive influx of Venezuelans has overburdened social services in Roraima state but expectant mothers like Cecilia say they have no other choice.
News imageNacho Doce/REUTERS Maria Teresa Lopez, 20, a Warao Indian from Delta Amacuro state, uses a syringe to feed her one-day-old baby Fabiola, at a maternity hospital in Boa Vista.Nacho Doce/REUTERS
"My baby would have died if I had stayed," says María Teresa López, one of the mothers who has made the trip across the border. "There was no food or medicine, no doctors," she says.
News imageNacho Doce/REUTERS Lismaris, 21, a Venezuelan from Monagas state, holds her three-day-old baby Cecilia at a maternity hospital in Boa Vista, Roraima state, Brazil, 21 August 2018Nacho Doce/REUTERS
Twenty-one-year-old Lismaris travelled to Boa Vista from Monagas state. Her baby is three days old.
News imageNacho Doce/REUTERS Jasmilfer, 23, a Venezuelan from Monagas state, holds her five-day-old baby Arjunea at a maternity hospital in Boa Vista, Roraima state, Brazil, 21 August 2018Nacho Doce/REUTERS
With frequent power cuts and sometimes no running water, many public hospitals have not been able to function in Venezuela.
News imageNacho Doce/REUTERS Marisol, 44, a Venezuelan from Monagas state, holds her two-day-old baby Amalia at a maternity hospital in Boa Vista, Roraima state, Brazil, 21 August 2018Nacho Doce/REUTERS
Women like Marisol, 44, from northern Monagas state prefer to travel hundreds of kilometres than risk giving birth under the precarious conditions in many Venezuelan public hospitals.
News imageNacho Doce/REUTERS Jackeline, 24, a Venezuelan from Bolivar state, holds her four-day-old baby Sofia at a maternity hospital in Boa Vista, Roraima state, Brazil, 21 August 2018Nacho Doce/REUTERS
Health workers have been protesting for weeks against the poor conditions in Venezuelan hospitals but to little avail.
News imageNacho Doce/REUTERS Irene, 23, a Venezuelan woman from Santa Elena city, holds her six-day-old baby Ashlei at a maternity hospital in Boa Vista, Roraima state, Brazil 21 August 2018Nacho Doce/REUTERS
While conditions in Venezuela remain as problematic as they currently are, young women like Irene, 23, will embark on the cross-border journey to ensure their babies get a better start in life.