Why some pregnant women prefer to born wit traditional midwife

Close attention, petting and personal touch wey traditional birth attendants dey give na one of di reasons wey make Christiana Indukari Peter dey go visit dem even though she register for health centre.

Christian don born two pikins and she dey six months pregnant wit her third pikin but evri now and den, she dey come visit Mama Ayenmiye Onini, a 70 year old traditional birth attendant for Afikpo waterside, Mile One Diobu, Port Harcourt.

Christiana say tell BBC Pidgin say na Mama Ayenmiye na im even tell her to register for health centre becos she say pregnant women also need di care wey antenatal clinics dey give.

"Di health centre good becos dem go give you injection, do scan and check your BP but Mama go touch and massage your body well. She go check your baby to make sure say di baby dey di right position, na im make I like to go see her make she check me well."

She add say na for 'Mama' place she born her first two pikins becos her labour dey always come for night so no time to go reach hospital as dem go rush her come 'Mama' place and she dey born successfully.

Dis na im make she kontinu to come see mama as she get di third pregnancy.

Na di same tin for Ukeme Oto wey dey six months pregnant.

She say wen she get body pains and she go hospital, dem go give her drugs but di body pains go still dey worry her until she come massage wit 'Mama'.

"After Mama massage me finish, all di body pains go go and I go get my bodi back. So di massage dey very good." She tok.

Mama Ayenmiye dey massage from di head to di toe of di woman becos she say evri part of di body dey connected.

She add say pain wey pesin dey feel for waist becos of one nerve or vein wey no dey well for di leg and go need to massage di whole body.

'Dis massaging, midwifery gift dey my family'

For Mama Ayenmiye, na God gift to her say she fit dey massage and help pregnant women born dia pikin.

She say na for 1979 she realise say she get dis gift as na dat year she help a pregnant woman wey labour catch unaware safely born her baby.

She say her papa Mama and her mama mama get di gift and e pass to her but she no really learn from dem, e just happen say as she meet di case of di pregnant woman in labour. She help her and di woman born di pikin safely and den later wen she deliver di placenta, she use thread tie and cut am to separate di umbilical cord.

"Dis gift dem no dey use money buy am or go learn am, e dey come to you. Like for my house no be all my brothers and sisters get am but e reach me. Even among my children no be all of dem fit do di work.”

“Like my first daughter, she try but she say she no fit dey suffer for di work like wen woman come meet you for midnight wit labour, you go help her now but she say she no fit but my last daughter dey do di work very well. So na gift from God."

‘Traditional midwives need regular training’

Mama Ayenmiye say she don also receive training from goment wey dem do for traditional birth attendants and dat training really help her for her midwifery work.

"For dat training na im dem tell us say e get di way wey di pregnant woman go dey na to quick quick send her to hospital so dat both she and her pikin go save becos if she die for your hand, dem go hold you responsible and na so I don send many women go health centre.

"Infact wen dem come, I go ask dem to go register for health centre. Dis na im make no woman don die for my hand. I don deliver many babies and no one don die weda di Mama or di pikin."

She say di last training she go for 2013 na Bayelsa State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Rehabilitation wey organise di training and give dem some work tools and birthing kits wey she dey use.

She ask for more training and assistance from goment for traditional birth attendants so dem fit do di work well.

"Dat training wey doctor dey give us dey help us to know our limitations as dem go tell us say wen di case dey like dis, no waste time send di women go hospital.

But those midwives wey no know go still keep di woman wen di case don pass dia power and dat one dey bad.

"So e good make goment kontinu dis training for us especially for di ones wey dey come up now so dem sef go learn."

Video Journalist, Monday Idara