Improving safe Motherhood in Communities of Isingiro District

By Fred Oyesigye (MPH)

Safe motherhood is a worldwide initiative aiming at reducing maternal mortality and infant mortality worldwide and Uganda in particular.

It is designed to ensure that women receive quality gynecological family planning methods, prenatal care, delivery and post natal care for a positive birth out come, so as to prevent the death of the mother and infant within 45 days after delivery or termination of pregnancy.

Maternal Mortality rate and infant mortality rate remain high in Uganda at 336/100000 live births and 53/1000 live births (UBOS 2016) respectively and moderate across all health centers in Isingiro (IHSSP 2015/2016-2019/2020), despite the government strategic interventions on:

Health infrastructure, human resource and technical support supervision to hospitals and health centers, this has been attributed to poor male involvement and sometimes culture (“Men shouldn’t be seen escorting a wife to hospital and sitting together listening to a talk at the same time”).

However the success of safe motherhood will be for family heads and communities to critically look at the importance of the following services.

Pre conception care, Family planning, Antenatal care, PMTCT ( prevention of mother to child transmission), Post abortion care ,Emergency obstetric care Essential new born care and extra care for low birth weight babies , Post natal care for both mother and newborn, to reduce Maternal mortality rate and Infant mortality rate in Uganda.

This can be as well in Isingiro district via Male involvement throughout gestation period and after, ensure access of health care services within time so as to receive positive safe mother hood messages together at the hospital or Health Centers.

Support establishment of essential health care services within communities, males should advance safe motherhood through respecting female rights and choices to nutrition and health seeking behavior during pregnancy.

Nevertheless both parents should ensure delay of marriages and first birth, until the girls pelvis is fully grown, because every pregnancy is a risk, especially to young girls.

Last but not least pregnant mothers should seek skilled attendance at delivery and post natal period to prevent unwanted pregnancy or criminal abortion.