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Joint Commission Creates New Standards of Care to Curb Maternal Mortality
One of the leading causes of maternal mortality in the United States is hemorrhaging. In fact, according to the CDC hemorrhaging accounts for 11.2% of pregnancy-related deaths. Based on these increasing numbers since 1986 the Joint Commission, the country’s leading accreditation organization for hospitals, has created 13 new standards for perinatal safety for hospitals to…
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The Best and Worst States to Have a Baby
I write about maternal health a lot on Social Good Moms and sometimes I don’t write enough about newborn health. I saw some interesting information this month about the best and worst states to have a baby and thought the data was interesting to share. The data was compiled by Wallet Hub. They compared the…
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NEW: Drug That Prevents PostPartum Hemorrhage Added To WHO Essential Medicines List
As I have written many times before postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) or excessive uterine bleeding after childbirth is the leading cause of maternal mortality in low-and-middle income countries. The recommended drug to prevent PPH according to the World Health Organization (WHO) is oxytocin. When administered in its recommended dose it causes little to no side effects.…
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Congressional Black Maternal Health Caucus Launches on Capitol Hill
On Tuesday the first congressional caucus on black maternal health launched on Capitol Hill. Led by Democrat congresswomen Rep. Alma Adams (D-NC) and freshman Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-Il.) the caucus’s mission is to ensure black women are not dying senselessly during or after childbirth As has been noted here many times before black women experience…
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A Pregnancy Series You Can Really Binge on Facebook Watch
After recently receiving a press release about a pregnancy docuseries on Facebook Watch I have been hooked! As a maternal health advocate, it takes a lot to stop me in my tracks, but 9 Months With Courteney Cox has really opened my eyes on the realities of pregnancy in America. After all, it has been twenty…
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11 Maternal Health Organizations to Support This Year
Maternal mortality continues to be a major problem the world over. The United States is the only developed country where maternal death rates are increasing especially for non-Hispanic black women. And in low-and-middle income countries, approximately 830 women die each day from pregnancy-related, preventable causes.
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January Is Birth Defects Prevention Month: Are Local Health Departments Ready?
Q&A with NACCHO Board Member Sandra Elizabeth Ford, MD, MPH Director of the DeKalb County Board of Health A baby is born with a birth defect in the United States every 4.5 minutes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Birth defects are defined as any structural changes present at birth that…
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Kenya’s Marie Stopes ban may drive more women to unsafe abortions
According to the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Board, they banned abortion services provided by Marie Stopes following complaints from the general public. Restrictive laws mean that women resort to unsafe means. jbdodane/Flickr Michael Mutua, African Population and Health Research Center The Kenyan Medical Practitioners and Dentists Board has stopped the NGO Marie Stopes International from performing…
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U.S. Support of Formula Over Breastfeeding is a Race Issue
Andrea Freeman, University of Hawaii When the United States threatened Ecuador with trade and aid restrictions if it did not withdraw a World Health Assembly breastfeeding promotion resolution that most people considered benign, if not banal, reactions ranged from shocked to amused. Experts explained that the U.S. resistance, although extreme, was nothing new. The United…
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Preventers of Maternal Deaths in the US Could Receive Millions in Funding
The relatively large number of American women who die due to childbirth is one of the little-known facts in our country. In a nation where we spend exorbitant amounts on healthcare, we have the highest maternal mortality rate of any other developed country. Word, however, is getting out that women are increasingly susceptible of dying…
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Suffering in silence: how Kenyan women live with profound childbirth injuries
Shutterstock Kathomi Gatwiri, Southern Cross University Sasha is 22-years-old. She was married off when she was just nine and by the time she was 11, she was pregnant with her first child, and unprepared for childbirth. So when labor came, in the middle of the night – in her geographically isolated village in rural Kenya…
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Europe Is Tackling Its Own Maternal Health Issues. Here’s Why. #MakeMotherhoodCount
We know that women in low-and-middle income countries are especially prone to maternal mortality. Those of us of who write about maternal health and keep up with worldwide maternal health, mortality, and morbidity statistics understand that in the world’s poorest countries we find the worst outcomes for both mothers and their infants. In recent years,…
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Kenya Maternity Fee Waiver is Great – But There are Still Gaps in the Policy
Kenya’s pregnancy policy hasn’t addressed the inequalities between rich and poor. Shutterstock Estelle Monique Sidze, African Population and Health Research Center About 21 pregnant women die every day in Kenya due to complications from childbirth. That’s equivalent to two 10-seater commuter micro minibuses, known as matatus, crashing every day with the loss of all the…
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Finnish Fashion Designer Creates Maternity Wear for 12-Year-Olds to Highlight Worldwide Child Pregnancy
Child pregnancy is a worldwide blight. Seven million girls in developing countries under the age of 18 become pregnant every year meaning that they have to grow up too soon, put an end to their education, look for adequate healthcare that they can afford, earn money somehow, possibly marry a much older suitor, and figure out…
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Why Kenya Needs to Adopt ‘Milk Banks’ to Reduce Infant Deaths
Elizabeth Kimani-Murage, Brown University Mother’s milk has an enormous impact on child survival. While in Kenya it has improved over the past decade, the number of children who die before five years remains significant. The rate has decreased from 115 per 1000 live births in 2003 to 52 in 2014. Neighbors Rwanda (2008), Tanzania (2012)…
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How World Vision Promotes Breastfeeding in the Philippines
I am always happy when World Breastfeeding Week rolls around each year. It gives me a chance to hear about the latest programs that are working around the world to increase breastfeeding rates. This year I learned about how World Vision is promoting breastfeeding in the Philippines through its 7-11 Core Intervention Framework which includes 7 interventions for women…
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How a Breastfeeding Initiative in Rural Kenya Changed Attitudes
Exclusive breastfeeding is recommended up to 6 months of age. Alissa Everett/Reuters Judith Kimiywe, Kenyatta University and Elizabeth Kimani-Murage, Brown University There’s a growing global recognition of proper infant nutrition in the child’s first 1000 days of life. This can be monitored through encouraging proper nutrition during pregnancy and the first two years of life…
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Why Family Planning Matters for Maternal Deaths and Child Survival
Contraception empowers women to plan the number of children they will have. Tizta Tilahun Degfie, African Population and Health Research Center Family planning improves child survival and reduces maternal deaths. But the uptake of family planning in Africa is only 33%, nearly half the world average of 64%. The contraceptive prevalence rate in African countries…
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Ensuring Safer Pregnancies for Kenyan Women in Urban Slums
Antenatal care is important during pregnancy. Reuters Blessing Mberu, African Population and Health Research Center; Kanyiva Muindi, African Population and Health Research Center, and Patricia Elungata, McGill University Globally, there’s a general decline in the number of women who die from pregnancy or childbirth complications. However in Kenya, it remains high at 488 deaths per…
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Recent Thoughts on Global Maternal Health
As an ardent supporter and advocate for maternal health, I am always happy to share my thoughts about the issue with a wider audience. I recently shared my thoughts with Merck for Mothers, a 10-year $500 million initiative supporting women during pregnancy and childbirth. RT if you agree with @JenniferJames. We must work to #EndMaternalMortality. pic.twitter.com/UXKNyE3rdb…