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Friday, October 19, 2012

Medical Center chief urges birth deliveries in health facilities

By Claro A. Lanipa

PAGADIAN CITY, Oct 18 (PIA) – To ensure the safety, health and life of a mother and her child, delivery at the Facility Based Delivery (FBD) and delivery attended by Skilled Birth Attendants (SBAs) is highly recommended, Zamboanga del Sur Medical Center chief Dr. Ma. Rovel Blancia said.

“Delivery at the facility is very important as well as delivery attended by skilled birth attendants, rather than delivering at home which is handled only by a ‘hilot’, Blancia said.

“Giving birth at home is extremely discouraged,” Dr. Blancia pointed out.

Dr. Blancia said , under the Millennium Development Goal (MDG), the Philippines is targeting that by 2015 maternal mortality be reduced to at least 52 per 100,000 live births or maternal mortality.

The 2011 statistics show there are about 162 per 100,000 women who died due to pregnancy and child birth, Blancia informed.

To attain this goal, trainings on Basic Maternal Obstetric and Neo-Natal Care (BMONC), were provided to BMONC teams of all the Municipal Health Office (MHO) of the 26 municipalities of Zamboanga del Sur, Blancia reported.

“A BMONC team is composed of a doctor, a midwife and a nurse who are capable of handling normal deliveries in their respective areas of assignment,” Blancia explained.

Meanwhile, the lady doctor disclosed that maternal deaths in the province has decreased. “In 2010, the ratio of maternal death was recorded at 146 per 100,000 live births while for 2011 it decreases to 90 over 100,000,” Blancia was quoted as saying.

“Let us take care of our mothers and newborns in order to save lives, so that by 2015 we will be able to achieve our MDG goal on maternal death,” Blancia emphasized. (JPA/CAL/PIA9)