Make women in labour comfortable - SEND Ghana

Mr John Nkaw, Programmes Officer of Send-Ghana, has advised health professionals, particularly, midwives to exhibit professional ethics and make maternity wards ‘patient-friendly’ towards minimizing infant and maternal mortality across the country.

“It is important to stop tasking pregnant women for additional logistics before attending to them before, during or even after labour.”

Mr Nkaw gave the advice in Tamale at a workshop to sensitise Midwives on Respectful Maternal Health. SEND-Ghana, a non-governmental organization (NGO), organised the workshop.

It was also aimed at educating them on measures that would help address infant and maternal mortality, especially in the rural areas of the Northern Region.

He complained about the high levels of maternal and infant mortality rates, and said a holistic approach was needed to address the problem.

He, therefore, suggested the training of more Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs), especially, in the hard to reach districts, to save lives.

Mr Nkaw commended midwives who accepted postings to serve in so-called ‘neglected’ areas to save lives, and appealed to the government and stakeholders in health to identify such nurses to offer them the necessary rewards to motivate them to work.

Madam Margaret Nmini, Deputy Director of Nursing Service at the Northern Regional Health Directorate, said it was important for expectant mothers and couples to seek professional advice on family planning, pre-conception, prenatal, and postnatal care to reduce maternal morbidity and mortality.

She identified haemorrhage, sepsis, unsafe abortion, hypertensive diseases, obstructed labour, and anaemia as indirect causes of maternal deaths, while other problems relating to pregnancy could cause severe pain, discomfort, or disability if they were not identified and treated properly.

She said according to official records, a total of 131 women died in 2011 in the region during labour, while in 2012, the figure dropped to 128. Last year, 122 died.

She said it was unacceptable for a woman to die through child birth so the situation must be addressed.

Madam Nmini commended SEND-Ghana for its initiative to help save the lives of women and children.