For instance, he said, mothers should religiously comply with their birth plan. “Mothers should not simply fill in their birth plan forms for the sake of complying with the requirements,” he said. A birth plan specifies, among others, information regarding the persons who will assist her in going to a health facility, the means of transportation and driver, the health facility and health professional who will take care of her and her child, and the donors in case blood donors are needed. If parents take their time setting their birth plan, at the time of delivery, everyone and every facility involved in safety of the mother and the child should be ready. Days before the expected due date, people who are needed
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for support could already be asked to prepare, he said. Parents should also avoid delays that could possibly lead to maternal death. Dr. Aturdido enumerated these delays to be avoided as: “delay in deciding to seek medical care, delay in identifying and reaching appropriate facility, and delay in receiving appropriate and adequate care at the facility.” From January to September this year, the Integrated Provincial Health Office (IPHO) of South Cotabato has already recorded 11 maternal deaths, seven of these were due to severe blood loss. He said, two of the recorded fatalities were mothers from neighboring provinces but were referred to the health facilities in
the province. Aturdido added that the provincial government in partnership with the Department of Health has been upgrading community-based health facilities to make sure that mothers and their children are immediately provided with the necessary health services. Three batches of midwives have also been trained on lifesaving skills for the same purpose. He said more midwives will be trained in the coming months, he added. Besides these, they are also strengthening the Community Health Team (formerly Women’s Health Team), which includes the barangay chairman, midwife, barangay health worker, and others and whose objectives include curtailing maternal and infant death.
Saturday, October 15, 2011