| OSAAB Regional Outreach and Awareness
OSAAB created the "Angel’s Cradle" outreach program in 2002 in order to educate women at risk outside of Tirana to the work being done by OSAAB at the maternity hospital in the capital. An informational brochure was produced in Albanian and given to various maternity hospitals, to NGO’s, and to the Albanian National Public Health Institute, for dissemination throughout Albania. The brochure does not encourage abandonment, but it does offer pregnant women in difficult circumstances a safe haven, a place where they can come to talk confidentially with a social worker about the options available to them and their babies, options other than to leave their babies in the streets to die. OSAAB has linkages with other NGO’s for referral services, in the event a woman wants to keep her baby but needs financial or emotional support.
OSAAB International Outreach and Awareness
June 10, 2007, Tirana, Albania, U.S. First Lady Laura Bush visited the OSAAB "Angel's Cradle" nursery in the Tirana maternity hospital while on her visit to Albania on June 10, 2007. The First Lady toured the nursery, as well as was briefed on the partnership between OSAAB, the maternity hospital, and the Women and Infants Hospital in Providence, Rhode Island (WIHRI), to jointly implement Family Centered Care health education programs to expectant and new parents.
Identifying Trends and Profiles
In 2002, an OSAAB volunteer worked with the hospital social worker to create a computer database. Information gathered on babies abandoned since 1996 has already been entered. In the future, when a mother’s identity is known, the social worker will interview her and enter her responses into the OSAAB database. The database includes information about the average age of mothers, their level of education, where they live, their marital status, societal demographics, and the reason for abandonment. Information compiled from the database is used to establish a profile of the mothers and to identify trends, as well as to conduct outreach and awareness campaigns to the women considered at risk. Reports compiled from the OSAAB database will be provided to the relevant Albanian policy makers, in hopes that they will increase their efforts to create the relevant social security structures to support women.
Raising Our Profile
In August 2000, IREX, a USAID funded project in Albania, produced a series of documentaries entitled "Heroes of Albania". The program series focused on Albanian citizens who volunteer their time in various ways. One of the "Heroes of Albania" documentaries was about OSAAB and its volunteers. The OSAAB program continues to be shown monthly on Albanian TV and has had a profound impact on the way Albanians view abandoned babies, and volunteerism in general. Women throughout Albania are now aware that there is a safe haven where they can leave their unwanted babies, without suffering any social or legal repercussions. Since this program has aired, the social worker at the maternity hospital has noted an increase in the number of women who come to her to declare their baby abandoned, rather then leaving them in the hospital and slipping out the back door. Click on the following lionk to view trhe documentary film. http://en-gb.facebook.com/pages/Organization-for-the-Support-of-Albanias-Abandoned-Babies-OSAAB/396979736118
Kosovo Refugee Crisis
From April - June 1999, over 500,000 Kosovars fled to Albania, to escape the ethnic cleansing in neighboring Kosovo. During this period of time, OSAAB provided care to over 700 refugees and newborn infants while they were in the maternity hospitals in Tirana, Albania. Many of the women had given birth while crossing the mountains, and came to the hospital severely anemic from the loss of blood. Their babies were sick due to exposure. The maternity hospitals struggled to cope with the increased demand. Although these babies were not abandoned, OSAAB stepped in to support the hospitals and to ensure that the needs of the babies and their mothers were met during this most difficult time.
Fundraising and Community Involvement
The work of OSAAB has been highlighted by the local media as a model of an NGO working cooperatively with governmental agencies and the community to provide sustainable care for abandoned Albanian babies. Not only has OSAAB been successful at involving the community through its volunteer program, it has also sought out local Albanian entrepreneurs to support its work. This outreach is exemplified by the annual OSAAB International Holiday Bazaar held in Tirana each December. Many Albanian businesses, local artists, and NGOs participate in the bazaar, with each contributing a donation to the program.
The bazaar not only serves as a tool to raise funds for the babies’ care, but it also brings the community together for a day of holiday activities. Through efforts such as these, OSAAB is teaching Albanian entrepreneurs and the community at large the importance of being involved in addressing social issues.
On June 1, 2002, Albanian Artist, Serxho Petrela, sponsored an art exhibition in Tirana, Albania in recognition of International Children's Day. The Piazza resturant hosted the function, donating champagne and food. Forty percent (40%) of the evenings' sales of art work was donated to OSAAB to ensure continued support to the abandoned babies.
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