CHAIRPERSON of the Midwifery Association, Maria Francois had declared that because of the lack of both human and material resources, there has been an increase in the number of maternal deaths nationwide.Speaking on the sidelines of the launch of the 5th Annual Midwives Conference last Thursday, Francois highlighted that “in any medical institution, there is a lack of resources.”
She also made mention of the fact that most of the times when there is a maternal death, “it is not in the hands of the midwives or doctors, but because of the late move by the pregnant women to seek antenatal care… As such, there was just nothing that could have been done to prevent it.”
The Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), she disclosed, had the highest recorded maternal mortalities, because of not only the shortage of resources but also because all the “high risk” cases are referred to that institution. “Usually, when mothers go to hospitals and are labeled as high risk because of their condition,” she explained, “both private and other public hospitals transfer these cases to the GPHC, because of not wanting to take the responsibility in case of a fatality.”
However, she said if more midwives were trained at least once or twice a year, there can be a decrease in the number of maternal deaths.

AN INTERNATIONAL TRAGEDY
Meanwhile, maternal and child morbidity is an international tragedy. It has been found that 530,000 women die yearly from pregnancy-related complications and developing regions account for approximately 99% of the global deaths in 2015. So declared Minister within the Ministry of Public Health, Dr. Karen Cummings at the same forum.
In that light, she noted that the new focus of the ministry was on achieving the Sustainable Development Goals that were not achieved and also sustain those for which progress has been made. Through this approach they will not only identify challenges, but also take relevant action to maximise opportunities to improve the craft of midwifery.
According to the Human Development Report, “Guyana has shown rapid improvement from the 1990s to present, but still has a long way to go,” Guyana has been performing in all Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) except goal five” that addresses maternal mortality.
The Guyana report stated that maternal mortality rate was (20.8) per 1000 and the neonatal morality rate was said to be 15 per 1000 in 2004; from the date of the launch of the report to present date, there has been 44 per 1000,000 reported maternal deaths (which still remains the highest per capita in the region).
In order to tackle the rapidly increasing maternal mortality, midwives must, identify immediate causes of maternal morbidity and mortality such as the nutritional status and the health status of women.
Help women to know their reproductive and maternal health rights, ensure that women participate in the decision making process, inculcate the correct attitude towards pregnancy and childbirth and encourage women to desist from harmful practices including violence and abuse.