One Heart World-wide

One Heart World-Wide Reaches Out to Tarahumara (Raramuri) in the Copper Canyon of Mexico

2012-01-23T23:59:24Z

SAN FRANCISCO—(BUSINESS WIRE)—The Tarahumara Indians, also known as Raramuri, who make their homes nestled deep in the Copper Canyon, in the state of Chihuahua, Mexico, have been hard-hit by one of the most severe droughts they have seen in years.

Tarahumaras are world-renowned for their long-distance running and for their ability to endure the unforgiving conditions of the Copper Canyon. This year’s drought, however, has caused food production in the region to drop to dangerously low levels and many Tarahumara men, women, and children are now facing starvation.

To help combat this food crisis, One Heart World-Wide, a San Francisco based non-profit organization, is aiming to raise $20,000 to support the Tarahumara community during this critical moment. One Heart World-Wide (OHW) currently works with the Tarahumara, implementing programs in maternal and child health. Because pregnant women, nursing mothers and infants are especially vulnerable to food-shortages, OHW immediately felt compelled to send aid. OHW is teaming up with FECHAC, a local partner in Mexico, who will be responsible for distributing aid to the affected families.

They ask that all donations be sent to One Heart World-Wide at 1818 Pacheco St. San Francisco, CA 94116. For more information, or to donate online, visit http://oneheartworld-wide.org.

One Heart World-Wide (OHW) is a 501(c)3 organization with over ten years of experience providing on-the-ground training in newborn and maternal health. OHW has current programs raising awareness on maternal health issues and teaching life-saving skills in Northwestern Nepal and the Sierra Tarahumara in Northwestern Mexico.

Arlene Samen to Speak at The Royal Society of Medicine

2012-01-12T19:42:10Z

This spring, One Heart World-Wide Founder, Arlene Samen, will be a guest speaker at the Royal Society Of Medicine conference on “Shaping the global health agenda - women, children, and society” in London. The two-day conference will be held on March 27-28, 2012. If you will be in the London area and are interested in attending you can find more information at the website for the The Royal Society of Medicine.

One Heart World-Wide Reports No Maternal Deaths in Nepal, Mexico Service Areas

2011-10-26T21:53:39Z

One Heart World-Wide (OHW), a nonprofit organization dedicated to saving the lives of women and infants in indigenous villages, today announced that there have been no maternal deaths in its service areas since the organization’s Network of Safety program began in Nepal in 2008 and in Mexico in 2009. OHW has also increased the number of women served in both countries, as well as the number of trainees. By working with local communities and health providers to develop a “Network of Safety” around families, OHW helps women in rural communities survive pregnancy and childbirth, and infants survive the first months of life.

“We believe that to save a mother is to save a culture. And while our work is not easy, it is a mother’s undue burden that drives us to provide families with the healthy birthing experience they deserve. This latest accomplishment in Mexico and Nepal is truly celebratory,” said One Heart World-Wide President and Founder Arlene Samen.

Every year around the world, 365,000 women die in pregnancy and childbirth, three million infants are stillborn, and another three million die before they are a month old.[1,2] Ninety-nine percent of these deaths happen in low- and middle-income countries.[1] One Heart World-Wide has been active in Nepal for three years and in Mexico for two. The organization’s 2011 goal for the Tarahumara Region of Mexico is to train 100 community workers and reach at least 1,000 rural women. In Nepal this year, OHW expects their programs will train more than 300 outreach providers and reach at least 2,000 pregnant women and their families. By raising awareness, teaching safe birthing practices and distributing essential medical supplies, One Heart World-Wide is helping to put an end to easily preventable pregnancy- and delivery-related deaths in rural communities.

About One Heart World-Wide
Based on over ten years of experience in Tibet, One Heart World-Wide established an effective, replicable and sustainable model to reduce preventable deaths related to pregnancy and childbirth among remote rural indigenous populations. This model improves the health and wellbeing of pregnant women and infants that may not otherwise have access to medical or public health services due to socio-cultural barriers, limited personal resources or remote living conditions. The organization is based in San Francisco and can be reached at 415-379-4762.

Contacts
Deldelp Medina or Arlene Samen, One Heart World-Wide: 415-379-4762
Vanessa Bradford, c3PR: 408-730-8506, mobile 209-505-3690

1. World Health Organization. Maternal mortality: November 2010. http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs348/en/

2. Levels and trends in child mortality; Report 2010 - Estimates developed by the UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation. New York, United Nations Children’s Fund, 2010

###
Share:

Contact

Vanessa Bradford
c3PR
209-505-3690
Email

To read the whole release go to: SFGate

One Heart World-Wide is one of the 77 finalist for Saving Lives at Birth!

2011-07-19T18:58:22Z

A partnership among USAID, the Government of Norway, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Grand Challenges Canada, and The World Bank submitted a call to the global community for transformative ideas that have the potential to save the lives of mothers and newborns in rural settings around the time of birth in three key areas: technology, service delivery and demand. One Heart World-Wide and it’s partners have been named one of the seventy-seven finalist for this new and exciting Maternal Child Health initiative. One Heart World-Wide, Medic Mobile and the Massachusetts General Hospital, is proposing to supplement the Network of Safety using low-cost, innovative technologies in Nepal.

One Heart World-Wide is asking its’ supporters to register and please vote to show your support at:
http://www.savinglivesatbirth.net/

For more information on Saving Lives at Birth please go to:
http://www.savinglivesatbirth.net/news/11/07/17/press-release-77-innovations-could-save-lives-mothers-and-newborns