KARACHI, Dec 12: The National Committee for Maternal Health (NCMH) in its recent report, “Maternal Health Status in Pakistan” identifies approximately 32 million (over three crore) local women in the reproductive age group (15 to 49 years).

Thirty of them are reported to die every minute in the country due to childbirth complications and absence of required medical intervention.

The NCMH report mentions that an estimated four to five million births occur annually i.e. eight to nine babies are born every minute. The total fertility rate in the country is said to be as high as 5.1 (an average Pakistani women will have born five children by the end of her reproductive life). Less than a third (30 per cent) of the local married women use contraception, less than 30 per cent have any care during pregnancy.

one fourth of all maternal deaths are found to be of those women who, despite reaching health care outlets, cannot be attended to, owing to the absence of trained personnel, besides non-availability of required gadgets and relevant material support.

Just over 55 per cent of pregnant women are fully immunized against tetanus. About 80 per cent deliveries (rural 89 percent, towns and cities 64 percent) take place at home.

A situation analysis of the facilities for emergency maternity and obstetric care provision in four districts of Sindh, conducted by the NCMH in collaboration with the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Pakistan (SOGP) and UNICEF- Sindh, has revealed that the number of such facilities is less than the number minimally acceptable for the safe care of mothers.

A large number of the existing emergency care facilities are not functioning round the clock. While very few births are taking place at these outlets, either due to their geographical location or due to lack of trained personnel including both midwives and doctors.

Non-availability of necessary drugs and equipments, absence of laboratories and blood banks, absence of referral facilities, non-availability of transport for patients, poor record-keeping and weak management are also identified as factors in making the public reluctant to approach even the limited number of facilities functioning across the province.—APP