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Thursday, August 4, 2011

Tackling maternal and child mortality in Nigeria

By Biliqis Bakare

Global analysis of statistics from different sources has revealed that children and women are the most vulnerable to the threats of poverty and untimely death. According to a recent World Health Organisation report, more than 600,000 women have died in recent time due to childbirth or pregnancy-related complications while Nigeria accounts for close to 10 per cent of that figure. The global under-five mortality rate in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia has not reduced sufficiently to reach the Millennium Development Goals by 2015. In fact, the highest rates of mortality in children under- 5 years continue to occur in sub-Saharan Africa, which accounted for half of child deaths worldwide in 2008. While substantial progress has been made in reducing child death, children from poorer households remain disproportionately vulnerable across all regions of the developing world. Most children in developing countries continue to die from preventable or treatable causes, with pneumonia and diarrhoea as the two main killers. Under-nutrition also contributes to more than a third of all under- five deaths.



While some progress has been made in reducing maternal mortality, the rate of decline is far from adequate for achieving the MDGs in 2015. Moreover, for every death, approximately 20 women suffer from injury, infection, disease or disability as a result of complications from pregnancy or child birth.



In the 2010 WHO report, Nigeria recorded 50,000 maternal deaths a year, thus placing it as having the second highest rate after India. And with every maternal death, there are more child deaths. The mortality ratio for children under -five years in Nigeria is 230 per one thousand births, 16 children less than five years die every 10 minutes. New born deaths account for more than a quarter of these deaths especially within the first week of life due to pregnancy and delivery related complications. As the statistics show, there is a close relationship between the well-being of the mother and the health of the child.



As a result of the enormity of the problem, 189 countries met under the umbrella of the United Nations in 2000 to address as a single package, child and maternal mortality in addition to other rights and developmental issues collectively adopted as the eight MDGs of which the fourth MDG aims at reducing child mortality by two-thirds by2015 while the fifth MDG proposes the reduction of maternal mortality by 75 per cent by the year 2015.



At the National Council of Health meeting in 2007, the Federal Ministry of Health adopted the Integrated Maternal, Neonatal and Child Health Strategy. This high- profile initiative, comprising high impact intervention packages, is to address the main causes of maternal, newborn and child death at community and health facility levels. Additionally, it will focus on integrated maternal, new born and child health services along the life cycle at all levels. The main goal is to essentially reduce maternal, neo-natal and child morbidity and mortality in line with the Millennium Development Goals. If fully implemented, the IMNCH Strategy will lead to a reduction of about 72 per cent of neo-natal deaths,70 per cent of under -five deaths and two- third of maternal deaths. In absolute terms, more than 200,000 mothers and six million children lives’ can be saved by 2015.To show its commitment toward the full implementation of this strategy, the Federal Ministry of Health has been collaborating with international agencies such as the United Nations International Children Education Fund, International Children Education Fund and Deux Construction Company through the building of maternal child centres.



Although global statistics depicting maternal and child health status have not fared better, the Lagos State Government has adopted the health vision enunciated in the Millennium Development Goals as the state’s minimum starting point for the sector. The state government, in realisation of the enormity of this problem, coupled with the attention the problem was getting, evolved the Integrated Maternal and Child Centres Policy, a vision tied to excellence in line with the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations. Child survival intervention, especially immunisation, apart from constituting part of the right of the child, had been acknowledged as a veritable strategy towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals . This is why the state government conceived the National Immunisation Plus Days which it has been adhering strictly to. It has also gone further by working with neighbouring Ogun State and the Republic of Benin, along the border towns, in finding more effective ways to eradicate the scourge of poliomyelitis in the two countries.



Perhaps, the most important step which the Lagos State Government has taken towards reducing maternal and child mortality level to zero in the state is the inauguration of Maternal Child Centres, equipped with the latest medical and other facilities to enhance and ensure optimal performance, across the state. The centres are located on the premises of the General Hospitals at Surulere (Gbaja), Ifako- Ijaye, Amuwo-Odofin, Ikorodu, Isolo, Eti- Osa and Ajeromi/Ifelodun. Each of the centres has five clinics for mothers, babies and children. The 100 bed facility also has neo-natal unit for premature babies, labour ward with delivery room, emergency clinic, a theatre for Cesarean sections in complicated deliveries and much more.



If we are to tackle the twin challenge of maternal and child deaths headlong in the country, priority should be given to implementable action plans developed in collaboration with critical stakeholders. The time for action is now!



-Bakare wrote in from the Features Unit, Ministry of Information and Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja, vide taylo123456@rocketmail.com


http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art201108030434517