What is Next Aid?
At every Next Practice clinic, each consultation donates towards a vaccination for someone in need in the developing world. We call it our NextAid initiative.
Why did we start NextAid?
At Next Practice, we believe everyone should start from the same place and deserves to have access to basic human rights like healthcare and education. NextAid is our unwavering commitment to help ensure no person should die from a preventable disease.
Sounds great doesn’t it? But how do we donate?
We are able to achieve NextAid by donating through UNICEF Australia. At the moment, our goal is to focus solely on Maternal Tetanus (MNT) vaccinations in Papua New Guinea (PNG). Specifically, for every patient that is seen within the Next Practice community, we will in return provide a vaccination for Maternal Tetanus to help eliminate it from PNG.
Why Maternal and Neonatal Tetanus Elimination (MNTE)?
Maternal and Neonatal Tetanus (MNT) represents a very high proportion of the total tetanus disease. MNT is a swift and painful killer disease and extremely fatal in newborns, killing 30,848 newborns in 2017 alone.
MNT has been among the most common life-threatening consequences of unclean deliveries and umbilical cord care practices and are indicators of inequity in access to immunization and other maternal, newborn, and child health services.
Once the disease is contracted, the fatality rate can be as high as 100% without hospital care and between 10% to 60% with hospital care. The true extent of the tetanus death toll is not known as many newborns and mothers die at home and neither the birth nor the death is reported.
This happens despite the fact that MNT deaths can be easily prevented by hygienic delivery and cord care practices, and/or by immunizing children and women with Tetanus Toxoid Containing Vaccines (TTCV), that are inexpensive and very effective, through the life course.
Unlike polio and smallpox, tetanus cannot be eradicated but through immunisation of children, mothers, other women of reproductive age (WRA) and promotion of more hygienic deliveries and cord care practices, MNT can beeliminated.
While progress continues to be made,13 countries have still not reached the MNTE status, including Papa New Guinea. Activities to achieve the goal are on-going in these countries and the World Health Organisation is hopeful that many are likely to achieve MNTE in the near future.
Look out for further information on donations here on the blog or in the clinics.
You can find out more information on MNTE here. https://www.unicef.org/health/index_43509.html