Abating Unsafe Abortion Key to Reducing Maternal Mortality

An aggressive strategy targeted at the prevention and expert management of unsafe abortion has been noted as one of the most significant measures needed to help reduce high maternal mortality in Ghana. This view was expressed by Dr. Koku Awoonor, Regional Director of Health Services for the Upper East region.

According to the Regional Director of Health Services, official statistics list unsafe abortion as the second leading cause of maternal mortality but contrary to this stark reality, the country seems not to take this as a serious problem hence not much is being done to bring down those figures. According to him, if one is considering strategies for saving the lives of women and girls who die through pregnancy related causes in this country, you cannot leave out a factor such as unsafe abortion which accounts for 11% of deaths of women.

The Regional Director made this observation in an interview on the sidelines at this year’s Conference of District Directors Group of Ghana where he made a presentation on the topic, “Improving Maternal and Newborn Survival Beyond 2015”. The conference which was recently held in Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region was on the theme: Sustaining the Gains of MDGs 4, 5 and 6 Beyond 2015, the Role of CHPS”.

Dr. Awoonor was emphatic that programs aimed at reducing maternal mortality must include interventions for reducing or preventing unintended pregnancies and equipping midwives and other health staff in similar line of duty with skills to save the lives of women and girls from unsafe abortion. Such efforts he noted, unfortunately lacks serious attention. He said family planning indicators in the country have been at a stagnating 33% in the past years. Similarly, restricted legal environment in Ghana coupled with intense social stigma has made access to safe abortion services a difficult matter for women and young girls who need the service thereby fueling unsafe abortion. He lamented that despite these staggering statistics, no one is paying attention.

Dr. Awoonor said there is a lot of evidence that most health institutions especially faith-based and private health providers are not complying with the Ministry of Health, Ghana Health Service guidelines on Comprehensive Abortion Care (CAC). He bemoaned lack of effective policy to counter the numerous violation of the policy. He said by the guidelines, all health institutions who provide maternal health services are mandated to incorporate CAC services in their main-stream activities unfortunately many of these organizations refuse to provide the service either due to religious considerations or other traditional and customary beliefs systems. He disclosed that in most cases these organizations even go further to refuse to refer patients who need the service to the appropriate places where their needs could be met.

The Regional Director described this action as gross disregard for the policy since the guideline clearly stipulates that where a provider does not have the capacity to provide the service, adequate information on the nearest facility where the service is available should be given to the patient.

He demanded that the Ministry of health and the Ghana Health Service come out with policy to counteract the violation of the CAC guidelines. He also advocated a program for the training of more midwives to expand CAC services and a renewed national commitment and increased resources to family planning.

Dr. Awoonor commended the efforts of Global Doctors for Choice (GDC) Ghana, a network of physicians and midwive advocates for safe abortion care and other reproductive health services for the group’s efforts at pushing for the adoption of cost free family planning in the country. He charged similar advocacy groups to organize more strategic community sensitizations targeting family heads, women groups, youth associations, beauticians and hairdressers.