00:00In Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, fear of Ebola is keeping some pregnant women away from health care facilities,
00:07with medical workers warning that missed checkups are putting mothers and babies at greater risk.
00:12The outbreak in Ituri has disrupted routine health care as patients fear becoming infected at clinics.
00:21When women miss appointments, it becomes difficult to know in time if the fetus has a problem.
00:26We can sometimes detect these complications before they become serious.
00:30But when women stay home for fear of infection, we see more complications, including still births and premature births.
00:37According to the United Nations Population Fund, weekly maternal deaths rose from 3.1 to 5.8 between May 25th
00:44and July 19th.
00:48It was really stressful because I was in a clinic near the Ebola treatment center.
00:53Even when the nurses and midwives came to see us, it sometimes traumatized me.
00:59We had also witnessed many Ebola-related deaths.
01:03I thought to myself, Lord, I don't want to risk catching this disease.
01:11Ishara delivered safely and is now caring for her newborn.
01:16But for many women, the fear remains a barrier to seeking care when complications arise.
01:27Several health care facilities were closed for a period of time.
01:30We too were closed for 21 days.
01:32Health care staff were quarantined to ensure that no one showed any signs of the disease
01:36and thus prevent any potential contamination of patients.
01:40Then, we disinfected the entire facility before reopening it to patients.
01:45I would like to reassure women that the hospital is now safe.
01:48It is better to come here for treatment than to manage complications at home.
01:55National data also shows deaths occurring outside health care facilities have nearly doubled,
02:00suggesting more patients are delaying or avoiding treatment.
02:06National data is untapos out of command maladies to the nurses K.
02:07National data are there after preparing judges off
02:07National data is abandoned
02:08That means $5 million is never if seen in particular.
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