Sandema (U/E), Feb. 18, GNA – Maternal mortality in the Upper East Region has consistently witnessed an upward trend for the past two years, the Regional Director of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Dr Emmanuel Kofi Dzotsi, has indicated.
In 2019, the Region recorded 32 deaths, which increased to 36 in 2020, and then to 43 in 2021, he added.
Dr Dzotsi said this in a speech read on his behalf at the 2021 health performance review meeting of the Builsa North Municipality, held in Sandema, on the theme: “Harnessing the contributions of all stakeholders in reducing the high occurrences of maternal deaths in the Upper East Region.”
Of the 43 maternal deaths, the Director indicated that the major leading causes were postpartum haemorrhage, eclampsia, sepsis, and pulmonary embolism.
He said the main facilities that contributed to the maternal mortalities in the Region were the Bawku Presbyterian Hospital with 14 deaths, followed by the Regional Hospital with five, while Sandema, War Memorial, Zebilla, Bongo and Vineyard Hospitals each recorded three deaths.
“It must however be on record that these Municipalities consistently record high values of maternal mortality. The Region is working on several death reducing strategies and system strengthening moves to reduce to zero the trend of maternal mortality,” the Director said.
Dr Dzotsi said the review meeting was intended for the health professionals in the Municipality to strategise to achieve their set targets for 2022 and fulfil the theme.
He said maternal mortality had been a daunting challenge of health care authorities, partners and providers in the Region over the years, “aside its horrendous impact on families and communities, maternal deaths darken and erode the gains chalked by the health system.
“The driving forces of every economy is its population or human resource, which is dependent on the number of surviving healthy mothers and new-borns,” he said.
Madam Juliana Akugre Anam-Erime, the Builsa North Municipal Director of the GHS identified anaemia as one of the causes of maternal mortality in the area and called on health professionals to intensify education on how expectant mothers could increase their Haemoglobin (HB) levels.
She said the Municipal Health Directorate would continue to work to strengthen their referral systems and liaise with partners to attract Doctors to the Municipality to reduce the Doctor to population ratio from 1:28,285 to 1:7,000.
Touching on COVID-19 in the Municipality, Madam Anam-Erime said a total of 586 samples were taken for COVID-19 test, 109 out of the number tested positive, with 66 being health staff, 107 discharges and two deaths.
She expressed gratitude to all health staff in the Municipality for their service and dedication to duty despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, and appreciated the efforts of their partners including Zipline Ghana, UNICEF, the Chiefs and people of Buluk among others.
GNA