WHO NEWS
Maternal mortality initiative to fight "invisible epidemic"
WHO joined forces with other agencies to step up the fight against maternal mortality in a major training and education initiative to prevent women dying in pregnancy and childbirth in 20 developing countries.
Some funds are in place to get the project moving, but WHO said a further US$ 10 million was needed to implement it fully in the 20 countries which have some of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world.
The initiative, launched on September 29 by the Partnership for Safe Motherhood and Newborn Health, which includes WHO and other international and regional agencies, also aims to improve the collection of data on maternal deaths.
Some 500 000 women die in pregnancy and childbirth every year, according to current WHO data.
WHO believes, however, that the real figure is much higher. It estimates that about 50% of maternal deaths are not reported because they are not classified correctly or, as is more often the case, not counted at all.
It noted that 62 countries have no data on maternal mortality.
"We have an invisible epidemic," said Dr Joy Phumaphi, WHO Assistant Director-General, Family and Community Health.
"Women should not die giving birth. Their deaths are preventable, even in the poorest countries," Phumaphi said.
A new manual entitled Beyond the Numbers Reviewing Maternal Deaths and Complications to Make Pregnancy Safer is being distributed as part of the campaign, WHO said.
Maternal mortality underscores the stark divide between rich and poor countries, and reducing the number of women who die in pregnancy and childbirth is one of the Millennium Development Goals to improve public health in developing countries.
In some developing regions, a woman has a one in 16 chance of dying during pregnancy and childbirth compared with a one in 2800 risk for women in the developed world.
The main causes of maternal death are blood loss, infection, hypertensive disorders, obstructed labour and unsafe abortions, WHO said.
The manual is available on: http://www.who.int/reproductivehealth/publications/btn/btn.pdf 