Motherland

The clip provides an initial feel of hospital conditions and introduces Lea. The clip also shows that patients are expected to provide their own blankets in the hospital.

As Lea talks with another mother about how her husband doesn't have the 35 cents for transportation, we learn that she is 25 years old, already has a two year old, can't afford diapers for her premature newborn twins, and must breast feed because she can't afford milk.

As a counterpoint to Lea's story, we meet Lerma, who has had seven children and who has chosen to undergo a tubal ligation to prevent future pregnancies. She jokes about being like a virgin again or being able to be promiscuous because she can't get pregnant. She also talks about having so many kids that she can't give love to them all.

Visiting fathers hold their babies against their bodies, a method for keeping the premature infants warm because the hospital doesn't have incubators. They talk about the expenses of having a sick baby and their lack of basics at home, like electricity and running water.

We see a counselor discussing birth control options with a couple of different mothers. Options are determined by circumstance. Women with only one child are not permitted to choose tubal ligation, and pills or injections are contraindicated for women who are breastfeeding. IUDs are recommended to several women. One young woman resists because her mother opposes birth control. Another expresses fe

A nurse tries to convince a resistant teen mother to get an IUD. The clip also touches on the issue of domestic violence.

Filmmaker Ramona Diaz explains what makes Fabella Hospital unique.

Filmmaker Ramona Diaz discusses the challenges of family planning education.

Filmmaker Ramona Diaz on how Kangaroo Mother Care is used in a Filipino maternity ward.