Safe
Motherhood
Pregnancy and childbirth are always dangerous in developing countries:
one woman dies every minute from pregnancy-related causes. When
disaster strikes, precarious conditions multiply risk.
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Premature deliveries, miscarriages brought on by trauma,
and unsafe abortions resulting from unwanted pregnancies
are all linked to crisis situations - and all require medical
treatment.
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Complications of pregnancy and childbirth are the leading
cause of death and disability for women aged 15 to 49 in most
developing
countries. Pregnant women must be a priority from the moment
a crisis begins.
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Only 53 per cent of deliveries in developing
countries take place with a skilled birth attendant, yet the
assistance of
health professionals at delivery significantly reduces death,
illness and disability. Emergency conditions mean even less access
to trained
assistance.
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Women in developing countries are 30 times more likely
to die from pregnancy-related causes than women in developed
countries. Humanitarian support for reproductive health saves
lives.
Prompt treatment could save most of the lives
lost to complications of pregnancy and childbirth - including more
than half a million
women each year. Safe motherhood interventions aim to reduce the
high numbers of maternal deaths and illnesses by providing:
- Pre-natal care
- Skilled birth attendants
- Access to emergency obstetric care
- Post-natal care to treat
haemmorrhage, hypertension and infection
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In situations of conflict and natural disaster, UNFPA
sends emergency reproductive health equipment and supplies
that help make childbirth safer:
- Supplies for clean home deliveries include
soap, plastic sheeting, razor blades, string, gloves
and pictorial instruction sheets.
- Equipment and
supplies for assisted deliveries at a health facility
also include stethoscopes, thermometers,
plastic aprons, latex gloves, syringes, sutures,
sterile gauze pads, an IV infusion set, cotton wool,
burn boxes
for safe needle disposal, amoxicilline and other
drugs.
- Equipment and supplies are also provided for
suturing tears, resuscitation, disinfection and surgery.
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Comprehensive services for delivery, pre-natal and post-partum care,
and breastfeeding support are organized as soon as the worst of the
crisis is past. UNFPA also strengthens local capacity to provide
services in the long term. UNFPA cooperates with the United Nations
Children's Fund (UNICEF), the World Health Organization (WHO), and
the World Bank to advance safe motherhood, and is active member of
the Safe Motherhood Initiative.
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