A Maternity Ward During the Ebola Outbreak: My Experience As an Ebola Fighter
Posted onThere are so many ways to become famous; unfortunately West Africa will mark human being history by being the area on Earth which experienced the worst Ebola outbreak. Ebola disease was known since 1976, but in this part of the world, no one was having an idea about it in November 2013 when the first cases started in Guinea Conakry. The weakness of the health system, the poor communication, the lack of coordination and resources contributed to the quick and large spread of the disease all over the subregion. Ebola created fear and panic in the societies of all countries affected; a lot of health facilities closed because health workers- who paid a huge tribute during this outbreak became afraid to treat any patients with Ebola-like symptoms. So the virus was killing one person directly and several others indirectly—mainly women—because all complications during pregnancy present similarly to Ebola (e.g. infection, eclampsia, bleeding, etc). Our intervention as Ebola fighters was less to treat patients affected by the virus than to avoid that those who were not Ebola infected died due to lack of proper care… read more
Measuring Content of Contacts Reveals Missed Opportunities to Deliver Quality Maternal and Newborn Health Care
Posted onContent of maternal and newborn health care needs to be measured to improve the quality of contacts between families and health workers, highlights research carried out by the IDEAS project, and published in PLoS ONE. The number of families that had contact with frontline workers suggested that demand for health care was increasing compared to previous reports from the same study sites. However, the percentage of women and babies who received care with all the recommended content was considerably lower across all stages of the continuum of care…… read more
How Midwives Can Answer the World’s Maternal Health Woes
Posted onSwept Under the Carpet: The Psychological Side of Maternal Health
Posted onIn high-income countries, as many as 10 to 15 percent of women experience depression, anxiety, or other non-psychotic mental health challenges during pregnancy or the year after giving birth. In developing countries, the chances rise to 16 percent of pregnant women and 20 percent of post-natal women, according to Jane Fisher, professor of women’s health at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. Despite the prevalence of these so-called perinatal common mental health disorders (PCMDs), they remain extremely underreported and undertreated. “We have a huge problem that has been kept under the carpet and it is just beginning to emerge,” said Dr. Ricardo Araya of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine at the Wilson Center on April 9… read more
Ending Preventable Maternal Mortality: Bridges to Morbidity Reduction
Posted onMany averted maternal deaths may still result in maternal morbidity, including severe and/or chronic conditions. The Fistula Care Plus (FC+) Project at EngenderHealth works to help prevent and treat some of the most serious maternal morbidities, including obstetric fistula…read more
Sharing Strategies for Integrating Maternal and Newborn Care: Strengthening the Continuum
Posted onThe global health community gathered May 19 to recognize the importance of integrating maternal and newborn care and to celebrate the release of the Every Newborn Action Plan (ENAP) Progress Report May 2015 and Strategies Toward Ending Preventable Maternal Mortality (EPMM). The side session at the 68th World Health Assembly Integrating maternal and newborn care: Strengthening the continuum was standing room only as a panel of champions for integration of maternal and newborn health took the stage. Co-sponsored by the Governments of Malawi and Cameroon, this event was planned with the support of a wide range of partners. To learn more about the event… read more
Delivering for Mothers and Newborns: Ending Preventable Maternal and Newborn Deaths
Posted onAn important side event at this week’s 68th World Health Assembly celebrated two reports – The WHO report on Strategies Toward Ending Preventable Maternal Mortality (EPMM) and the Every Newborn Action Plan Progress Report (ENAP). These two reports contribute to the Global Strategy for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescent’s Health… read more
Accounting for 1 in 3 Maternal Deaths, Health Disparities Persist in South Asia
Posted onThe state of maternal health in South Asia is difficult to assess. Although rates of maternal mortality are declining between 2 and 2.5 percent a year overall, the region’s massive population – one fifth of the world and over 1 billion people in India alone – means it still accounts for one out of three maternal deaths. In February, Oxfam India hosted the South Asia Consultation on Maternal Health in Kathmandu, Nepal, which brought together delegates from each South Asian country to discuss recurring problems and highlight four persistent challenges as well as recommendations for improving results in maternal health. As part of the Advancing Policy Dialogue on Maternal Health Series, the MHTF, along with UNFPA, supported the Wilson Center to host a panel of participants from the consultation for the event “South Asia Consultation on Maternal Health: Regional Dialogue and Way Forward”… read more
East Africa Community Launches Regional Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Scorecard
Posted onThe East African Community (EAC) has launched a Regional Reproductive Maternal Newborn and Child Health (RMNCH) Scorecard. The Scorecard is an innovative tool for communicating progress on key global, regional and national commitments for children and women’s health. The Scorecard was launched in the 2nd Health Ministers and Parliamentarians’ Forum held recently in Kampala, Uganda that brought together EAC Ministers responsible for health, selected parliamentarians, the academia and development partners… read more