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Other than the factors discussed in the lecture, what do you think are other factors affecting maternal mortality rate in the Philippines?
Aside from the mentioned factors, I think delay in seeking care during pregnancy, an up-to-date usage of information by healthcare professionals delivering care, financial constraints, and lack of health information are factors that also contribute to maternal mortality rate in our country.
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Delay in seeking care during pregnancy - According to Genuis (2016), most women do not begin seeking antenatal care until near the end of their first trimester in which critical events happen in the development of the fetus such as the formation of major organs. Seeking care during this time helps in screening and identification of problems that may affect this critical period as well as addressing them together with the primary care provider.
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Up-to-date usage of information by healthcare professionals delivering care - I think that those in the position to care for pregnant mothers should always use up-to-date evidence based information as there were practices before that were found to not help during pregnancy. An example of this is the incorporation of EINC to reduce maternal mortality.
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Financial constraints - As we all know, our country has a poor healthcare delivery system. Not all people are able to have access to quality healthcare for the reason of lack of funds. This also causes pregnant women to delay seeking care during pregnancy despite being near to clinics.
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Lack of health information - I think that preconception care (PCC) should be well known by the general public most especially the women in reproductive age. I agree with the article of Genuis (2016) about PCC being a new standard of care in maternal health services, but seeking PCC itself is not known by expectant mothers.
Reference: Genuis, S. J., & Genuis, R. A. (2016). Preconception Care: A New Standard of Care within Maternal Health Services. BioMed Research International, 2016, 1–30. https://doi.org/10.1155/2016/6150976
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What are the top 3 causes of maternal mortality ratio in the Philippines? Top 3 maternal morbidity?
The top 3 causes of maternal mortality ratio in the Philippines are complications related to pregnancy, hypertension, and hemorrhage. On the other hand, the top 3 causes of maternal morbidity are hemorrhage, infection, and unsafe abortion.
Reference: Baccay, K. B. (2022), Prenatal Care Handouts [Powerpoint Slides], College of Nursing, UP Manila, https://vle.upm.edu.ph/pluginfile.php/171556/mod_resource/content/1/Prenatal%20Care%20Handouts%202020.pdf