RIAU ISLANDS — Yolanda Putri Febriani (25), a woman born in Batam who is still struggling to handle stunting cases against her youngest daughter, Chayra Yofizia. Yolanda and her husband have high hopes that their child will soon be free from stunting problems. Previously, the couple’s eldest son, Rahmat Hidayat (8) also experienced a similar condition.
Currently, their family lives in Penawar Rindu Island, precisely in Kampung Jawa, RT 01 RW 01, Sekanak Raya Village, Belakang Padang District, Batam City. Difficult economic conditions force this small family to occupy a rented residence, with one wooden stilt house partitioned into two parts.
The husband works as helmsman of boats. He gets part of the route from the Belakang Padang port to Sekupang and vice versa. From the early morning, he should be ready at the port, until he returns in the dark afternoon when there are no more customers. Meanwhile, Yolanda only does activities at home as a housewife.
“My youngest child (Chayra) was diagnosed with stunting. For months I struggled to get my little one to have a normal weight,” Yolanda said.
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She still kept remembering those shocking moments. Around six months ago, while undergoing a check-up at Puskesmas Belakang Padang, the midwife broke the news that stunned Yolanda and her husband. Her sentence is unforgettable until now.
“This child of yours is underweight, Mom. Stunting indicated. The weight and height are far from what they should be,” said the midwife at the time.
It felt as if the rotation of the world stopped, while she was the one who rotated many times. She did not expect that the stunting cases would repeat again in her children. In terms of motor development, in fact, the little one looks so good. She can walk, she can respond, she is interested in something, she can laugh or even feel sad. Her abilities are like normal children in general. It is just that her weight development is indeed ‘stingy’.
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At Chayra’s age, who is now 21 months old, she weighs only 10.1 kilograms. In fact, she should have reached 13 kilograms. The mother also wondered why stunting cases always occured in her children. The older brother, Rahmat, even used to experience more severe stunting cases.
“I wonder why my kids are stunted. Her older brother used to be worse. But, alhamdulillaah now he’s normal,” said the mother.
The midwives and health workers at the Puskesmas also traced the root cause. Through various questions and searches, it turned out that the cause was that the intake eaten by the little one was not fulfilled in a balanced way.
After being diagnosed with stunting, based on the instruction of the midwife, Yolanda had to cooperate with her husband and the little one to try to catch up with the weight. One of the ways was to do a diet program for their little one, reduce unnecessary intakes, and increase the intake that should be absorbed.
The will of Allah Almighty Who Heal then brought Ms. Yolanda’s family together with Dompet Dhuafa. In last October 2022, Dompet Dhuafa Cabang Kepulauan Riau was promoting Program Jaga Gizi Anak Pulau (Island Children Nutrition Care Program).
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As a zakat institution, Dompet Dhuafa is a liaison between the muzaki (people who give zakat) and the families of the benefit recipients (mustahik), one of which is for Ms. Yolanda’s family. Assistance in the form of nutritious food packages is often given to this small family by Dompet Dhuafa.
Not only that, Dompet Dhuafa also collaborated with the Puskesmas Belakang Padang to provide assistance to Ms. Yolanda along with several other benefit recipients.
Five months later, Wednesday (15/3/2023), Dompet Dhuafa returned to Chayra’s house. This is the hundred times Dompet Dhuafa has provided assistance to her. This opportunity is also an act of control over the improvement of Chayra’s health.
“Alhamdulillaah, Chayra likes to eat vegetables and dishes cooked by her mother. Thank you for paying so much attention to us,” Ms. Yolanda continued to the Dompet Dhuafa team. (Dompet Dhuafa/Muthohar)