The Integrated Provincial Health Office (IPHO) through the Provincial Nutrition Council (PNC) is making a plan to reduce the maternal mortality rate in Negros Oriental.
Dr. Edgardo Barredo, who heads the Provincial Nutrition Council, said one of the factors that they want to address on maternal mortality is the nutrition aspect. He said majority of the mothers who died after childbirth had poor nutrition.
Other reasons for maternal mortality are the post-partum bleeding, hemorrhage due to non-contraction of the uterus and the absence of pre-natal care.
The maternal mortality rate in Negros Oriental is decreasing but Barredo said it is still high based on their aim to eradicate or at least dramatically reduce the number of deaths.
The IPHO record showed a total of 23 cases in 2007, 28 in 2008, 29 in 2009 and a slight reduction with 23 cases in 2010.
Dr. Barredo said the establishment of Basic Emergency Obstetric Care (BEmOC) and lying-in clinics in the barangays especially in the hinterlands are one of the ways to help reduce maternal mortality.
They are now discouraging the public against engaging the services of a “hilot” or quack doctor to assist mothers during childbirth to prevent possible complications. All pregnant women are encouraged to give birth inside the BEmOC or in the lying-in facility, Dr. Barredo said. (PNA/Maricar Aranas)