Ghana Registered Midwives Association advised to reduce maternal mortality rates

Dr Jemima A. Dennis Antwi, the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for Health Development and Research, has advised the Ghana Registered Midwives Association (GRMA) to work with stakeholders to reduce maternal mortality rates in the country.

Dr Antwi said the GRMA should collaborate with the health stakeholders to come out with new key strategies and take advantage of global initiatives to address maternal and newborn deaths and their associated complications.

She made the call during the GRMA's 15th Biennial General Meeting and launched its 90th anniversary, on the theme: "Celebrating Midwives, Forging the Future".

According to her, there was a global call for urgent, evidence-based, and country-led efforts to strengthen health systems and programmes to address the critical gaps that continue to endanger the lives of women and their newborns.

Dr Antwi also appealed to the government to address the major challenges that contribute to the mortality; these include limited access to qualified midwives, healthcare facilities, and poor quality of health care.

She advocated for the midwives to be accessible to every community in the country through competent education, employment deployment, motivation, and progression.

She emphasized the importance of promoting and empowering all young midwives to position themselves to take on leadership roles at all levels, and also to help develop the leadership capacity of other staff members and students.

Nene Okukrubour Teye Kwesi Agyemang V, the Chief of Dodowa, who launched the 90th anniversary, advised the stakeholders to support the midwife's education with modern programmes to equip them to deliver international standards of health quality delivery to reduce maternal and newborn mortality.

Netta Forson Ackon, the President of GRMA, urged stakeholders to support the government to provide the needed equipment to enable them to deliver optimal care to save lives and also protect the well-being of mothers and newborn babies.

Ackon also encouraged the GRMA members to continue discharging their duties professionally as a pillar of strength in the country's health sector.

Dr Robert Anesiya, the Greater Accra Regional Director of Health Services, called on the GRMA to enhance their members' capacity with skills training on digitalisation and modern tools to improve quality health delivery, especially in the rural areas, to reduce maternal and infant mortalities.

He appealed to the GRMA to create a global network to upgrade their skills and knowledge from other international partners.



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