Over 4.5 mln Women, Babies Die Annually During Pregnancy & Childbirth: UN

News Desk

Islamabad: Over 4.5 million women and babies die every year during pregnancy, childbirth, or the first weeks after birth, equivalent to one death happening every seven seconds, mostly from preventable or treatable causes if proper care was available, according to a new World Health Organisation (WHO) report.

The report stated that global progress in reducing the premature deaths of pregnant women, mothers, and babies has flatlined for 8 years due to decreasing investments in maternal and newborn health.

The report, ‘Improving maternal and newborn health and survival and reducing stillbirth’, assesses the latest data, which have similar risk factors and causes, and tracks the provision of critical health services.

Overall, the report shows that progress in improving survival has stagnated since 2015, with around 290,000 maternal deaths each year, 1.9 million stillbirths (babies who die after 28 weeks of pregnancy), and a staggering 2.3 million newborn deaths during the first month of life.

Pressures on already overburdened health services have increased as a result of the COVID-19 epidemic, rising poverty, and deteriorating humanitarian issues. Only one in ten countries (out of more than 100 surveyed) says they have sufficient funds to carry out their current plans.

According to the most recent WHO study on how the pandemic affected fundamental health services, almost 25 per cent of countries continue to report continuous disruptions to services for sick children as well as crucial prenatal and postnatal care.

https://thepenpk.com/silent-emergency-zero-progress-in-reducing-premature-births-since-2010/

“Worldwide, the mortality rate for expectant mothers and newborns remains intolerably high, and the COVID-19 pandemic has made it even more difficult to get them the healthcare they require,” said WHO Department of Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health and Ageing Director Dr. Anshu Banerjee.

“If we wish to see different results, we must do things differently. More and smarter investments in primary healthcare are needed now so that every woman and baby has the best chance of health and survival,” Dr. Anshu added.

Losses in funding and underinvestment in primary healthcare can obliterate chances for survival. For instance, despite the fact that prematurity is currently the top cause of all fatalities in children under the age of five worldwide, less than a third of nations claim to have enough newborn care facilities to handle small and sickly infants.

In the worst-affected countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and Central and Southern Asia, the regions with the greatest burden of newborn and maternal deaths, fewer than 60 per cent of women receive even four of the WHO’s recommended eight antenatal checks.

“The death of any woman or young girl during pregnancy or childbirth is a serious violation of their human rights,” said United Nations Population Fund Technical Division Director Dr Julitta Onabanjo.

“It also reflects the urgent need to scale up access to quality sexual and reproductive health services as part of universal health coverage and primary health care, especially in communities where maternal mortality rates have stagnated or even risen during recent years,” Dr Julitta added.

Along with necessary medications and supplies, clean water, and dependable electricity, more qualified and motivated healthcare professionals, particularly midwives, are required. The report emphasises the importance of focusing efforts, including through better planning and financing, on the poorest women and those in vulnerable circumstances who are most likely to forgo life-saving treatment.

Addressing detrimental gender stereotypes, biases, and inequities is necessary to further improve maternal and neonatal health. According to recent data, barely 60 per cent of women between the ages of 15 and 49 decide for themselves about their rights and sexual and reproductive health.

Based on current trends, more than 60 countries are not set to meet the maternal, newborn, and stillborn mortality reduction targets in the UN Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.