In rural Central America women are dying. Before becoming wives, mothers or grandmothers, they are dying because poverty, inequality and geography are keeping them from education, care, and treatment. They are dying largely from preventable and treatable diseases such as cervical cancer.

These women are only part of the more than 500,000 maternal deaths every year, and millions more who suffer from preventable disabilities because they cannot access the services they deserve.

Ashoka and the Maternal Health Task Force are trying to change this injustice through a competition of innovative maternal health projects that transform the field of maternal health globally.

One of these projects comes from a group of Rice University undergrads who are working to end the cycle of maternal death and disability with only a pack on their back. What is so innovative about the OB-GYN Lab in a Backpack is they are taking the age-old concept of the house call and updating it with a solar-powered pack of medical supplies bringing rural women access to health care for the first time.

In 2008, the students who designed the pack were recognized by the Clinton Global Initiative and awarded a grant to refine and produce more of the packs. In the words of President Clinton, “The potential of this to save lives is really quite staggering.”

Today the packs come with tests specific to the community’s needs, such as pregnancy, HIV or syphilis. In 2009, the pack provided care for an estimated 500 women in Ecuador, Nicaragua and Guatemala. The organization is competing to continue and expand efforts in Guatemala.

In Guatemala, only 67 percent of women have received a Pap smear and, in rural areas, the amount is only 58 percent. The backpack provides health care providers with the appropriate tools to reach these women, screen for cervical cancer and provide reproductive health services and treatment.

The plan is to have packs for maternal, dental and eye care manufactured in-country within three years—bringing health to vulnerable women and girls no matter where they are.

Read the original post at http://ashleyarnold.net/healthygirlsblog/ob-gyn-in-a-backpack/. Check out other solutions for improving maternal health or to participate in the global call to solutions, please visit Healthy Mothers, Strong World: The Next Generation of Ideas for Maternal Health. www.changemakers.com/maternalhealth.