The Association of Premature Babies in Romania and the EESC Civil Solidarity Prize

Romanian NGO wins European Economic and Social Committee Civil Solidarity Prize.

Ana-Maria Cononovici, 23.02.2021, 14:00

The Civil Solidarity Prize of the
European Economic and Social Committee was unveiled on 15th February
in a virtual ceremony. The Romanian Association of Premature Babies was one of
the 23 EU and UK recipients of the prize for their exceptional contribution to
fighting Covid-19 and its disastrous consequences. Each winner received a prize
of 10,000 euros.

The project submitted by the Association
of Premature Babies in Romania formed part of a category related to the
production and distribution of medical equipment, which included projects on
the production and distribution of facemasks and hygiene products, the
transformation of buildings into hospitals, the building of new medical structures
and the purchase and donation of medicine and technical equipment.

Diana Gămulescu, the founder of the
Association of Premature Babies, explains:

It all started with a need that had
to be addressed, namely, at the beginning of the pandemic, many medical workers
were telling us that premature babies were having less access to hospital
services due to the Covid restrictions and that funding for neo-natal wards
were suspended or cut and used to turn maternity hospitals into Covid support
hospitals. So the organisation mobilised itself and the community, with the aim
of helping as many maternity hospitals as possible. We didn’t know at the time how
much we would be able to raise from donations or whether we would be able to
reach all the maternity hospitals in need of protection equipment, UV lamps and
hygiene products. There were maternity hospitals where you couldn’t even find soap,
but we took it one step at a time and by the end of September we managed to
raise the necessary funds and make donations to six maternity hospitals.

Diana Gămulescu told us more about
the work of the Association of Premature Babies before the pandemic:

The equipping of maternity
hospitals in general is a priority, because there are 22 such hospitals with special
neonatology wards and 64 general maternity hospitals around the country and
each and every one of them needs something at all times. Apart from raising
money, we also carried out projects aimed at the medical staff, such as continuous
learning, we held workshops in hospitals and helped prepare families with
new-born babies for the moment when they take their babies home, we ran
webinars and projects to prevent premature births and travelled around the
country to less privileged communities. We also provide financial support to
disadvantaged families with premature babies who need long-term care. So, we’ve
got a lot to do!

The European Economic and Social
Committee launched its civil solidarity contest in July 2020 on the theme of civil
society against Covid-19 as a one-off event to replace its traditional prize. Its
aim was to pay a tribute to civil society in Europe, which became actively and
selflessly involved in solidarity projects from the very early days of the
pandemic. Other Romanian projects that ran for the EESC prize include a social
solidarity project ran by the Adi Hădean Association. A chef who saw his
restaurant closed because of the pandemic, Hădean made sure his staff together with
volunteers prepared and distributed warm meals to doctors, other medical
workers, families in isolation and the elderly. Diana Gămulescu from the
Association of Premature Babies in Romania told us how her association decided
to run for the civil solidarity prize:

When we found out about the contest
we realised it would be a solution for us to be able to continue the donation
raising campaign we began. We saw it as an opportunity in this respect, but we didn’t
think we would win. One of the most important things when you’re trying to do good
is finding solutions to ensure funding. It’s complicated to find businesses and
convince people to make donations and for us the contest was simply a chance to
continue our work.

Winning was a big surprise and Diana
Gămulescu is still overwhelmed:

I still can’t believe that miracles
happen, that there’s a Santa Claus in February. I’d like the prize to help raise
awareness about premature births in general. I’d like to thank our supporters,
individuals and businesses, and my team for their involvement and dedication. I
would like it very much to be able to increase the impact of charitable actions
nationwide.

In the near future, the Association
of Premature Babies will continue to raise money to provide maternity hospitals
with the needed equipment, hoping to reach as many hospitals as possible, and to
carry out information and support programmes for parents.