maternal mortality ; the new cancer in African countries

Hello Family its been ages, guess who is back to your space?  I am so excited to get back to what I love doing and one of them is writing. I trust you all are settling into the the new year and government as well? Now back to our topic..... I am excited to write about the topic and I want to join the government, and other health organizations and bodies in creating more awareness. 

Maternal mortality which simply means death of ante partum and post partum women ( pregnant women and women that just delivered) is one of the leading causes of death. There are several other causes of death in mostly developing countries but this has contributed to more deaths from my observation as a health worker. 

During pregnancy, a women is expected to visit a registered and certified health facility with certified staff for proper care and follow up care prior to and after delivery. I wont blame some women because they may not know the difference but you are expected to ask and know the qualification of those involved in your care to avoid regrets. 

On first visit to any facility, baseline data should be obtained and you have the right to know so as to be able to detect when its beyond normal. N/B any facility that do not carry you along in your care may have been an oversight but in cases where you have asked and they still refuse to carry you along, then you have the right to refuse care.

so of the baseline data includes your last menstrual period, blood pressure, weight, height, shoe size, past medical, obstetric and medical history. An ultrasound will be done to see the state of the foetus and will be communicated but incase the radiographer forgets to say anything to you which dey usually do please do ask question and get some clarification to your level of understanding. Blood test are not left out too... 

In some cases, well trained traditional birth attendants, do recommend you do some of those baseline tests before  rendering any form of care. The greedy ones will only tell you of the past history to boost confidence in them. The reason the care rendered in some of these institutions is queried simply is because its mostly based on non-scientifically proven methods. The more reason you should ask a certified health worker to clear your doubts.   

Some common causes of maternal mortality include undiagnosed or poorly managed hypertension in pregnancy(pre-eclampsia and eclampsia), undiagnosed or poorly managed diabetes in pregnancy, anaemia, infection, abortion, obstructed labour, severe bleeding, uterine rupture, retained products of conception, underlining health issues like cardiac problems, HIV, just to mention but a few.

Firstly, death of expectant and nursing mothers can be prevented if a she visits a facility early at first discovery of pregnancy for proper collection of data, diagnosis, medication and follow up. Proper history should be given alongside proper maternal age to aid the dispensing of the right dosage of medications. Compliance to prescribed medication too is  so important. Also if women  can adhere to registered physicians and nurses advice asking questions where they need clarification, prevention or reduction of maternal mortality could be possible in our society. Eating right, maintaining a healthy life style and optimal mental health is a great factor in aversion of the occurrence of these ugly incidences. Exercise is also encouraged but with a physician`s prescription. 

Secondly, Its important to read vastly,, (that is why we have access to the internet)to understand more and this gives you room to challenge your care givers in a positive way so as to gain more knowledge. Prompt visit to the hospital at the observation any these symptoms will help prevent some ugly occurrences which includes existing headache even after resting, bleeding before nine months, dizziness, liquor drainage, swelling of the feet (sometimes it may be physiological), norming of the fingers or the feet, too much vomiting after first trimester.

Lastly, distance or non functional health facilities has lead to a lot of death of which I know the government has good plans but I appeal that it should be executed with urgency. Also the fear of huge hospital bills, ceaseran section and fear of the unknown has a lot of families astray. The society has had a way of passing information to masses of which at the end of the journey they still run to the hospital but this time around in a critical state. No one wins an award when they don`t have a track record of not having a C-section. From a long time its been a way of helping families ensure that they carry their healthy babies and wives home. For those that are scared of loosing shape after surgery, a lot of mothers can testify that they have gone through surgery and they are still looking great.  

Let`s join the government to fight this huge monster, by creating more awarenesses in our facilities, let health workers be nice and accommodating in order to allow these families come close and ask questions. Trained personnels should be at these entry points in order to attend to those coming with these needs. A simplified monetary plan can be made where the clients can make some payment in installments to aid relieve the financial burden when the time comes close. Feel free to ask questions, comment and send emails for more  information.