By Miriam Dansowaa Osei
There are no words to explain the excitement of a mother who gives birth for the first time, from the stage where she first hears the cry of the newborn baby to the moment she begins to breastfeed it. It is really a moment of joy for her and the entire family.
However, the joy of having a new member of the family is sometimes not complete when the mother dies while giving birth, leaving the newly-born baby at the mercy of other family members. Maternal death has become a canker, eating deep into Ghana’s fabric.
Causes
In Ghana, out of every 100,000 childbirths, 310 women die. Some of the factors that account for maternal death include post-partum haemorrhage, hypertension, sepsis, pulmonary embolism and obstructed labour.
Post-partum haemorrhage refers to the bleeding which occurs within twenty-four to forty-eight hours of delivery. Haemorrhage is the leading cause of maternal deaths worldwide, accounting for 27.1 per cent of deaths. It happens when there is poor contraction of the uterus, poor blood clotting, tear in the uterus or when the placenta is retained or not completely removed during delivery.
Secondly, hypertension or high blood pressure is a condition in which the force of blood against the artery is too high. The most common type of hypertension women face during pregnancy is pre- eclampsia. Pre-eclampsia is when there is a sudden rise in temperature, causing swelling in the face, glands and feet. If pre- eclampsia remains untreated, it may develop into eclampsia where the mother would have convulsions, go into coma or die.
Pulmonary embolism is a condition in which one or more arteries in the lungs get blocked by a blood clot. In most cases, pulmonary embolism is caused by blood clots that travel from deep veins in the legs or rarely, from veins in other parts of the body.
All pregnant women are at risk of blood clot formation (thrombosis) during pregnancy until at least six weeks after childbirth, especially if the woman has had a Caesarean section and is unable to move around as immobility increases the risk of thrombosis. Embolism can go unnoticed because the symptoms- chest pain, shortness of breath and swelling in the legs are also symptoms of pregnancy which is life-threatening to the mother and her child.
In addition, obstructed labour accounts for six per cent of all maternal deaths. Labour is considered to be obstructed when the presenting part of the baby cannot progress into the birth canal despite strong uterine contractions. The most frequent cause of obstructed labour is cephalo-pelvic disproportion. Cephalo-pelvic disproportion is a condition where there is a mismatch between the baby’s head and the mother’s pelvic brim. The baby may be large in relation to the mother’s pelvic brim, or the mother’s pelvic brim has contracted due to malnutrition. Other causes of obstructed labour include pelvic tumors and malpresentation or malposition- when the baby is coming out with any other part of its body instead of its head.
Also, sepsis is a condition caused by the body’s reaction to an infection. The body releases chemicals to fight an infection. Sepsis occurs when the body’s response to these chemicals is out of balance, triggering changes that damage organ systems in the body, leading to death
Effect and prevention
Maternal death increases the number of orphans in Ghana and decreases the country’s work force. To reduce these deaths, pregnant women must visit hospitals regularly for ante-natal care and also to receive skilled care at birth.
Also, the government can reduce maternal deaths by providing training for traditional birth attendants in rural areas and providing them with delivery kits.
The recent announcement by the government to build 88 new district hospitals and regional hospitals for each of the six newly-created regions is extremely laudable as it would lead to an increase in access to health care, especially for expectant mothers, thereby reducing the maternal mortality rate in the country.
(The writer is a student of the Ghana Institute of Journalism, Accra)
