In Ethiopia, 350 participants from 36 African nations are meeting to create strategies for utilizing non-physician clinicians (NPCs) in the fight against maternal death and disability. The conference, entitled “Human Resources for Maternal Survival: Task-Shifting to Non-Physician Clinicians”, is a collaborative effort of the Ethiopian Ministry of Health, AMDD, UNFPA, UNICEF, and WHO. It will end on July 2, 2009.
NPCs include nurses and midwives, and play a crucial role in African nations, especially in rural settings where physicians are in short supply. NPCs are often responsible for emergency obstetric care and sometimes for more highly specialized procedures, such as surgery. According to UNICEF, maternal mortality in sub-Saharan Africa is highest worldwide, while rates in North Africa follow shortly behind. Improving maternal health is the fifth goal of the Millennium Development Goals. Dr. Werner Haug, Director of the Technical Division in the United Nations Population Fund, focused on the importance of working towards reproductive health and achieving benchmarks in progress by 2015. “The challenge is to produce health professionals with the right skills and in sufficient numbers to provide family planning services in every community and basic and comprehensive emergency obstetric and newborn care in every district,” Dr. Haug stated. “This is an issue of equity, social justice and human rights.”
Conference in Addis Ababa Regarding Maternal Health Strategies
July 1st, 2009UK to Provide £16m to Sierra Leone Government Health Program
April 6th, 2009The UK is providing the Sierra Leone Government with £16m (approximately $23.75 million) for the Reproductive and Child Health program (RCH), which was launched by the Sierra Leone Ministry of Health and Sanitation in 2008.
According to Ivan Lewis, minister of the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID), “The lives of many mothers could be saved with access to basic health care and the help of a midwife – things that are normal for us but out-of-reach for the world’s poorest.” The RCH program will provide training for new midwives, and access to better clinics and basic drugs - fundamental changes that can be expected to save thousands of lives. The plan also includes a program of increased immunizations, malaria awareness, and the promotion of basic hygiene to reduce the number of preventable deaths from diarrhea.
From the DFID press release:
“The £16m funding from the UK will support:
* emergency obstetric care for pregnant women - this will include access to medical facilities, trained midwives and advice on family planning. The programme funded jointly with the UN will also give a fresh push on immunisation against diseases like measles and tetanus and create a feeding programme to provide nutrition to those who are suffering malnutrition.
* direct support to primary health clinics and district hospitals - DFID and the World Bank will create a pool fund to provide health care facilities run by district councils with direct funding to deliver basic health services.
* effective resource management - DFID will provide technical assistance to ensure money is spent on what it is intended for by rooting out payments to “ghost workers” and tracking how resources are spent.
* urgent roll out to priority districts - short-term funding will be provided to a group of NGOs to ensure the Reproductive and Child Health Plan is implemented as quickly as possible in five priority areas of Sierra Leone (Bo, Tonkolili, Bombali, Koinadugu, Kono).
Addressing Child and Maternal Mortality
February 16th, 2009
- Source: IRIN
African Union (AU) Commissioner for Social Affairs, Biencé Gawana, insists that African countries should focus on promoting maternal, infant and child health and reporting on progress. During a summit on child and maternal health in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the members of the AU agreed to create a continent-wide campaign to stress the importance of child and maternal health. While Africa has some of the highest rates of maternal, infant, and child mortality, progress is being made. As information and communications technology and innovation continue to grow, health officials are certain that the improvements to maternal, infant and child health will be “paramount”. In addition, the AU has proposed a pharmaceuticals manufacturing plan, which will allow countries within Africa to produce their own drugs and medicines.
In the hope of reducing child and maternal mortality, which are key indicators of the health of any community, 60 nursing aides in Sierra Leone have recently been awarded certificates for passing a course specifically educating them in child mortality. While there is a lack of qualified health workers willing to work in health throughout Sierra Leone, the graduation of these 60 nursing aides shows that Sierra Leone has heeded the advice of the AU, and has taken steps to assure that infant, child, and maternal mortality decreases over time.
