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We'd like to introduce you to the newest member of the GreaterGood community. Just three days ago baby girl (not yet named) was safely delivered into the arms of his mother Ma Htoo with the support and care of the Mae Tao Clinic staff.

Ma Htoo is a 31-year old mother of a newborn baby. She had an amazingly fast labor and delivered her baby girl within 3 hours of labor. During and after the delivery, there was no complication and the baby was healthy; the birthweight was 3.2 kg (7.05 lbs) and she will soon be vaccinated and provided with birth records.

Ma Htoo has 5 children including the newborn: the eldest is 5 years old. Which means she has 5 children 5 and under, all of whom were born at MTC.She and her husband are daily workers, making around THB 100 – 150 (USD 3 – 4.5) per day. In her village, there is no clinic and the 90 – 100 households are made up of migrant workers. Most villagers know about Mae Tao Clinic and get treatment when they have health issues.

You can help. Along the Thai/Burmese border, infant mortality rates are 5 times higher than the rest of Thailand. Stories like Ma Htoo's are all too common. Save a mother and child by donating today—right now, thanks to a generous matching gift, you can ensure a safe birth for mother and child for just $43.

2018 Monthly Newborn Feature

August - Kyaw Eh Paw

Kyaw Eh Paw has 4 siblings. His parents are from Karen state, Burma currently live in Mae Ku, in Thailand. They moved to Thailand in search of work 5 years ago. Around 50 - 60 households lived in the village they are originally from. There are no clinics in the village they came from so villagers mainly rely on traditional medicine. Mu Eh Lar delivered her 3 other children at home with a traditional birth attendant. This time her husband encouraged her to come to Mae Tao Clinic. After two days of contractions Mu Eh Lar delivered her baby boy with the support of the MTC staff. She was extremely grateful for the clinic because after receiving immunizations her son became feverish. He was admitted to the Reproductive Health Inpatient Department (RHIPD) for the monitoring for a week and she was able to stay with him for free at the clinic until the fever subsided.

July - Naw Myint

Naw Myint arrived at MTC weeks before her due date because she had a Premature Amniotic Fluid Rupture, in her case before the 34th week of pregnancy. The risk of infection, especially if untreated, increases dramatically in cases like hers. Thanks to the MTC staff she was admitted immediately and provided with antibiotics to prevent neonatal sepsis. Eh Pwoh was delivered just two days ago without complications. She received her first round of immunizations and was provided with a birth registration. We are all so thankful to the MTC staff and for your donations. They directly support the health of mothers like met!

June - Ma Ohn Mar

After working until the day she delivered her baby girl, Ma Ohn Mar and her sister arrived at MTC around midnight and the baby girl was delivered around 9am the next morning without complications. For the last 10 years, Ma Ohn Mar and her family have lived and worked in Thailand. Her husband works on the Moei River, which is along the border of Thailand and Burma/Myanmar, transporting materials between two sides. Both her son and daughter dropped out of school after grade 6 to start work at a water factory, in order to support their family. Despite the fact that all four family members work full time, together they earn less than 2 times the minimum wage. As you can imagine the reliable and affordable care MTC provides is incredibly important to her and her family.

May - Aye Chan Aung

Aye Chan Aung's mom did not receive any prenatal care during her pregnancy for fear of being arrested by police due to her status as an internationally displaced person from Myanmar. Her mother encouraged her to travel to MTC for the actual delivery of the child. She spent approximately one months salary for transportation expenses to travel to MTC. We are happy to report that just a few days ago she was able to safely deliver Aye Chan Aung! After the delivery the birth mom became feverish and she was able to stay at the clinic and receive care until she recovers. During this time Aye Chan Aung also received her first doses of immunization and was provided a birth certificate.

April - San Htay

In April, San Htay became a new mother to 4-day-old baby boy, her 5th child. After experiencing labor in a Thai clinic with her first three children, she safely delivered her last two children under the care of clinicians at Mae Tao Clinic. This experienced mother has a tangible awareness and appreciation for the drastic difference in care she received at MTC during labor just last week. As a Burmese refugee she experienced immense discrimination during her first child's birth at a Thai hospital. Not only was she discriminated against and not cared for properly, she was also unable to pay the incredibly expensive medical bill afterwards. However, at MTC she visited the clinic multiple times for prenatal care, was supported through labor and through complications as she was able to comfortably stay for 4 days after giving birth. During labor she hemorrhaged, had low blood pressure and ended up needing a blood transfusion. "I hope to see that the MTC continues providing the health care services to the poor like me. It is necessary to have the health service center along the border that does not discriminate on grounds of race, language or religion."- San Htay.

March - Htat Win Lin

In March Htat Win Lin became the first child born to his Burmese migrant parents who live in a small village in Karen state. This is a village with essentially no health care facilities, one primary school and where earning a living is incredibly difficult. Htat Win Lin's parents make $9 per day collectively, which is lower than the minimum wage of a Thai citizen, $10 per day. As you can imagine medical expenses to safely deliver a child were beyond what they could afford. But this month we are pleased to say that Htat Win Lin was safely delivered at Mae Tao Clinic without complication and rested safely with his parents for 11 days. During this time he received immunizations, a birth certificate and his mother received post natal care before returning to their village. During our interview with this new mom, she could not take her eyes of her little son and the dad also looked very happy and took good care of his wife and newborn son during their time at MTC.

February - Thi Ha Oo

The village where newborn Thi Ha Oo and his family are from Bago, Myanmar, a village that does not have a health facility, where education only goes up to grade 8 and where his parents work as day laborers earning 11 per day. Since Thi Ha Oo's mother was 4 months pregnant, she began prenatal care at Mae Tao Clinic. In late February, after 3 days of hard labor and with the help of the Mae Tao Clinic reproductive health team she safely delivered Thi Ha Oo! The new family was able to stay at the clinic for 9 days after the birth to recover, receive immunizations, breast feeding support and a birth certificate.

January - Soe Maung

In January Moe Myint gave Soe Maung. Moe Myint is a single mother of three who recently moved from Myanmar to Mae Sot, Thailand, in search of work to support her family, including her parents and older sons whom she left in Myanmar. She lives with a companion who makes THB 200 (USD $6) per day, sometimes less, and lives in a small temporary shelter in the field. Many displaced people from Myanmar live in harsh conditions such as these. When she arrived in Mae Sot, six months pregnant, she began prenatal care at MTC, which was the first time she received prenatal care for any of her children.

Mae Tao Clinic, founded by Dr. Cynthia Maung in 1988 to serve the flood of displaced Burmese people surging across the border into Thailand, has served tens of thousands of Burmese refugees living in the border region of Mae Sot, Thailand. In November 2007, the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy named Dr. Cynthia Maung as the winner of the 2007 Asia Democracy and Human Rights Award.