Dr Sarah Pickworth, 45, from Stratford-upon-Avon, works in a mountainous area of the country, which has the highest maternal mortality rate in the world.
The Chagcharan District, where she trains midwives for the aid agency World Vision, is cut off by snow for more than half the year.
It is also plagued by security threats, with bomb explosions audible by day and the night sky lit up by flares and the red streaks of tracer bullets.
When World Vision arrived in the district in 2004 there were no trained midwives.
But the charity has now trained and set-up 11 midwife outreach teams, increasing the health coverage in the district by almost 40%.
Working with a local organisation, they have also trained 294 health promoter couples who teach basic health topics to others.
Sarah said: ‘Afghanistan has the highest maternal mortality in the world – that’s the number of women who die in pregnancy, labour, and within the first few weeks after childbirth.
‘So many die needlessly through lack of basic care, bad diets and working hard in the fields right up to giving birth.
‘Often, the only person who helps them when they do give birth is an unskilled neighbour or mother-in-law in the home.
‘Many women also die from dangerous cultural practices during childbirth, and bleed to death before they can get permission to access health care.
‘Women still need to get the permission from their husband or mother-in-law before they can go for help. Our work raises awareness and tackles these barriers.’
World Vision is a relief, development and advocacy organisation dedicated to working with children, families and communities to overcome poverty and injustice.
Its aim is to make a serious and sustainable impact on poverty and cause long-term change.
For more information on World Vision and its work, please visit the
website.
