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.
In response to making pregnancy safer, the Department of Health is implementing the National Safe Motherhood Program established in 2008, aiming to give Filipino women universal access to health services towards making their pregnancy and delivery safer. In addition to that, the “Program for Young Parents”, an expansion of the Teen Moms Program of the UP-PGH, is also created to help reduce unmet need for family planning, especially among poor and women below age 19. Under the Comprehensive Emergency and Obstetric Newborn Care, the program also promotes antenatal consultations, facility-based services, and a gap of 3 to 5 years between births through the use of long-acting reversible contraceptives.
2. What can you suggest in order to decrease our maternal mortality and morbidity in the country? Give at least 3 suggestions.
The goal of decreasing the maternal mortality and morbidity in our country can be solved by better accessibility to high quality healthcare. In this case it would specifically be,
Maternal morbidity and mortality is caused directly due to insufficient access and infrastructure in the Philippines and indirectly by lack of awareness about preconception, prenatal, and antepartum care. Effective reduction of maternal mortality and morbidity is achieved by:
- Adequate Healthcare facilities and funding for a higher quality care which has a higher chance of obtaining positive outcomes
- Improved healthcare access through setting up new healthcare facilities and road infrastructure to increase access to the mother and the healthcare facility
- Adequate Education to everyone about the importance of causes of maternal mortality and morbidity and seeking and providing care prior to and during pregnancy and on childbirth. This can increase health seeking behaviors which lead to earlier detection of risks/problems in pregnancy.
- Advocating of family planning which can help youths in recognizing risks of teenage pregnancies and the long term benefits of planning for financial support, which is directly related to obtaining adequate care.
Department of Health (n.d.). National Safe Motherhood Program. Retrieved from https://doh.gov.ph/national-safe-motherhood-program
Department of Health (n.d.). Program for Young Parents: Implementing Guidelines [pdf]. Retrieved from https://doh.gov.ph/sites/default/files/basic-page/Program%20for%20Young%20Parents%20Implementing%20Guidelines.pdf