Nationwide survey on obstetric and new born care soon

Accra, June 23, GNA - Government is to conduct a nationwide survey on emergency obstetric and new born care soon, Chief Director of the Ministry of Health, Mr Sylvester Anemana announced on Wednesday.

He said the outcome of the survey would guide policies to strengthen the nation's health system to respond to maternal and new born care. Addressing stakeholders at a day's national conference on the state of Ghana's health sector in Accra, Mr Anemana noted for instance that maternal death audits have become an essential indicator for all health facilities as a measure to identify avoidable factors contributing to pregnancy and child related deaths.

The conference under the theme: "MDGs or Better Health: Promises or Commitments", was under the auspices of the Alliance for Reproductive Health Rights (ARHR) to review promises and commitments made so far under the Millennium Development Goals.

Presently, Mr Anemana noted that 80 per cent of all maternal deaths are audited and added that in order to attain the 100 per cent mark, government was reviewing the guidelines with the introduction of a system for the confidential enquiry into maternal deaths.

"It is expected that this will serve as a catalyst to improve government's commitment and action to address maternal mortality," he said. To ensure that reproductive health services are made universal, Mr Anemana said the Ministry of Health have now approved six health training institutions to start direct entry midwifery training to increase the human resource base for safe motherhood services.

In addition, he said, government had directed that National Ambulance Service, which currently covers only 24 Metropolitan and Municipal districts, should be extended to all the 168 districts nationwide by December 2012.

He said with an improved mobile telephone network in Ghana and road infrastructure, the country should be able to operate an efficient ambulance service to improve on referrals of obstetric and other medical emergencies. Mrs Vicky Okine, Executive Director of ARHR said sixteen years since the ICPD, sexual and reproductive health status of women and children had not seen improvement in Ghana.

Quoting statistics to buttressed her point, she said, infant mortality decreased from 64/1000 life births in 2003 to 50/1000 life births in 2008, while maternal mortality remained high at 580/1000 life births in 2008. Mrs Okine expressed the worry that home-based deliveries remained significantly high at 43 percent putting the lives of many women of reproductive age at risk.

In addition she said rural urban disparity in health care provision remained uneven with 84 per cent of urban births were likely to be delivered at a health facility compared to only 43 per cent in rural area.