The women gradually gained trust in Mobile Midwife’s
counselling and slowly moved away from traditional practices
that could be detrimental to their health, like
douching to cleanse the unborn baby of illness and ‘dirt’.
Laura et al. assessed existing beliefs and practices
in maternal and child health in the same setting with
the intention of tailoring Mobile Midwife’s messages to
meet the needs of the women. They reported that douching
is at the apex of traditional medicine in the Ghanaian
context; and these are performed throughout pregnancy.
Douching can be done every fortnight, and as pregnancy
progresses and labor approaches they can be given as
often as every third day. The main concern is that some of
the herbal mixtures used are quite strong and can have
adverse effects on the fetus