TACLOBAN CITY, July 11 (PNA) -- The Commission on Population (PopCom)
will step up awareness campaign to prevent maternal deaths in rural
communities.
On Monday, PopCom launched the regional dissemination of Sixth State of
the Philippine Population Report (SPPR6), a document that discusses issues on
maternal mortality and explores the underlying factors contributing to its
incidence.
Rosalinda D. Marcelino, Popcom deputy executive director said the report
presents national policies now in forced. These are the Responsible Parenthood
and Reproductive Health Law and other national and local program interventions
to curb maternal deaths.
Marcelino lamented that the number of Filipino mothers dying from
pregnancy and childbirth continues to rise.
Among the reasons include clinical, physical and geographical to social,
cultural, economic, and political.
“With the enactment of the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive
Health Law, many of these factors can be addressed, however, the mere presence
of the law is not enough,” Marcelino explained.
She stressed the commitment on the part of all stakeholders, recognition
of what needs to be done, and a strong will to create a truly healthy
environment for women.
SPPR6 features four emerging good practices that can be replicated in
other areas.
These are the good governance and community empowerment towards safe
motherhood program that helped reduce incidence of maternal deaths; the project
midwife in every community in the Autonomous Region Muslim Mindanao (MECA),
which deploys registered midwives in villages especially in the remote areas
with no permanently assigned registered nurse or midwife.
Also listed is the economical and enhanced safe motherhood project
considered as the best rural health unit programs in the country by Department
of Health.
Another good practice is the health leadership and governance program
enabling local leaders towards better local health systems. The program focuses
on the personal leadership transformation of local health leaders, including
local chief executives and local health officials.
“Mothers are bearers of life. No mother should die while bearing and
giving life,” Marcelino added.
Despite varying results in measuring maternal deaths, they all point to
the sad reality that a considerable number of Filipino mothers die every year
during pregnancy and after delivery.
The country failed to meet the Millennium Development Goals on reducing
maternal mortality ratio to 52 per 100,000 live births by 2015.
The 2015 SPPR6 published by POPCOM discusses various factors related to
maternal mortality as well as existing national and local policies and programs
aimed and promoting women's health and safe motherhood.
It also explains various methods by which maternal deaths are measured
and recorded in order to understand and prevent incidence.
The regional launch ended with the signing of pledge of commitment of
support from the DOH, National Economic Development Authority, Leyte provincial
government and the Visayas Health Project, and Engenderhealth Philippines to
address maternal mortality. (PNA)
BNB/SQM/LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA/EGR
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