Maternal mortality: Nigerian statistics alarming – Association

Dr Rosemary Ogu, former President of Medical Women Association of Nigeria (MWAN) on Thursday said that the statistics of maternal mortality rate in Nigeria was alarming.

Ogu stated this in Port Harcourt at a 3-day workshop organised by World Federation Societies of Anesthetist (WFSA) in collaboration with the Medical Women Association of Nigeria (MWAN) with the theme: “Safer Anesthesia From Education (SAFE)”.

She said the aim of the workshop was to train medical anaesthesia providers on how to give anaesthesia and care for pregnant women before and after surgery and during birth.

She said the training was the first of its kind in Nigeria.

“Global anaesthesia societies have more focus on anaesthesia on mothers because of maternal mortality rate since last year.

“The mortality rate in Nigeria is about 12 percent and some of it occurs during anaesthesia.

“More than 50 women have benefited from this workshop and we expect more numbers before the end of the workshop,” Ogu said.

She called on pregnant women to go to the hospital for antenatal and access healthcare facilities.

Dr Jolene Moore, Coordinator of the workshop and a staff of the Societies of Anesthesia, said the workshop was to train anaesthesia doctors on how to handle women with emergency cases during delivery.

“This workshop is to train health workers on how to administer anaesthesia on women during delivery when the need arise, especially during an emergency,” she said.

Moore called on women to go to hospitals on time to access facilities that would help them on safe delivery during pregnancy.

She identified funding as one of the major challenges facing the association in training the workers.

She called on the Federal and State Governments and other agencies to support in training and providing facilities for women’s safe delivery during birth.

Prof. Christy Mato, Provost, College of Health Sciences, University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, noted that the training was intensive and rich to enable anaesthesia providers to know how to take care of their patients during surgery.

He said that the medical women association had learnt and benefited from the workshop.

Mato said the college would collaborate with the World Federation Societies of Anesthetist and Medical Women Association of Nigerian to reduce the rate of death among pregnant women.

She also called on the government to equip the health centres across the country.