Answer the following and post your answers here. Cite references of your answers as much as possible.
1. In response to Making Pregnancy Safer, what are the current programs in the country to address maternal mortality and morbidity? Cite at least 1.
Some of the current programs implemented in the Philippines to address maternal mortality and morbidity are:
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National Safe Motherhood Program. Developed by the Department of Health, this program focuses on the health and welfare of women throughout their pregnancy. Furthermore, it also encompasses adolescent pregnancies and meeting the unmet needs for family planning contraceptives of women into its priority agenda until 2030. In general, it helps improve women’s health and well-being by (1) collaborating with Local Government Units (LGUs) in establishing a sustainable and cost-effective approach of delivering quality maternal and newborn health services and (2) establishing core knowledge base and support systems that facilitate the delivery of quality maternal and newborn health services in the country.
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Community-Managed Maternal and Newborn Care. This program, which is developed by the Department of Health, guides midwives, nurses, and doctors in the non-BEmOC Rural Health Units (RHUs) and Barangay Health Stations (BHSs) in understanding better (1) the implications of the three delays, (2) the framework of the Community-Managed Maternal and Newborn Care (CMMNC), (3) the basic clinical interventions for maternal and newborn complications, and (4) the management of maternal and newborn health services.
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Maternal, Newborn, Child Health and Nutrition (MNCHN) Services Strategy. The MNCHN Services Strategy by the Department of Health seeks to rapidly reduce maternal and newborn morbidity and mortality by providing Basic and Comprehensive Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (BEmONC and CEmONC) capability of health facilities in order to meet the United Nations Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5, which are to reduce child mortality and to improve maternal health, respectively.
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Maternal and Child Health Integrated Program (MCHIP). The United States Agency for International Development’s Maternal and Child Health Integrated Program (MCHIP) in the Philippines is a 21-month program working with the Government of the Philippines in response to addressing the unmet need for postpartum family planning in the country. It advocates for family planning and the usage of an intrauterine device (IUD) postpartum to support the Department of Health in creating a favorable environment for family planning.
2. What can you suggest in order to decrease our maternal mortality and morbidity in the country? Give at least 3 suggestions.
In order to decrease maternal mortality and morbidity in the country, the following can be done:
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Educate women, mothers, and families on pregnancies, proper family planning, and contraceptive use. Maternal mortality is linked with low levels of education. In response to this, it is important to equip people with knowledge on the factors affecting pregnancies, such as nutrition, medications, and other lifestyle and environmental conditions in order to prompt them to make more well-informed choices for their own health and well-being. Furthermore, we should also include proper family planning and contraceptive use in our discussions to help reduce unplanned pregnancies, which is another contributing factor to the rates of maternal mortality in the country.
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Empower women, girls, families, and communities. It is important to recognize the high value of women within society by giving attention to gender equality and empowerment. This gives way to the prioritization of the survival and health of women. In order to empower women, it is important to implement interventions that facilitate their capacity to care for and choose for themselves. Inclusive of this is women’s autonomy over their own reproductive lives and healthcare decisions, access to healthcare services and options, and the ability to influence the quality of those services through participatory mechanisms. Through supporting the ability of women to make active decisions, the health of their children and families can also be positively influenced.
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Prioritize adequate resources and effective healthcare financing. One of the contributing factors to maternal morbidity and mortality in the country is the lack of funding and resources allocated to maternal and newborn health facilities. Because of this the quality of care given to reproductive women is being compromised given the lack of proper training for health professionals and the inadequacy of basic medical supplies. Hence, there is a need to prioritize adequate resources and effective healthcare financing to improve the quality of maternal and child care in the country.
References:
Department of Health. (2006). Community-Managed Maternal and Newborn Care: A Guide for Primary Health Care Professionals. https://www.jica.go.jp/project/philippines/0600894/04/pdf/cmmnc_01.pdf
Department of Health. (2018). National Safe Motherhood Program. https://doh.gov.ph/national-safe-motherhood-program
Department of Health. (n.d.). What Is The Relationship Of The ENC Protocol with Regard to the Maternal, Newborn and Child Health Nutrition (MNCHN) Strategy? https://doh.gov.ph/faqs/What-is-the-relationship-of-the-ENC-Protocol-with-regard-to-the-Maternal-Newborn-and-Child-Health-Nutrition-MNCHN-Strategy#:~:text=The%20Maternal%2C%20Newborn%2C%20Child%20Health,and%20newborn%20morbidity%20and%20mortality.
EPMM Working Group. (2015). Strategies toward ending preventable maternal mortality (EPMM). Geneva: World Health Organization.
U.S. Agency for International Development. (2015). Maternal and child health integrated program (MCHIP) - Philippines. https://www.usaid.gov/philippines/health/mchip