India joins UN network to halve maternal, newborn deaths
India has joined Network for Improving Quality of Care for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health, a global health network focused on improving the quality of care for new mothers and babies.
The network is supported by World Health Organisation (WHO), United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and other partners.
Key Facts
- India is among nine countries that will be part of the network. Other countries are Bangladesh, A Cote d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Malawi, Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda.
- Under this network, countries will work to improve the quality of health care facilities to mothers and babies. They will strengthen national efforts to end preventable deaths of pregnant women and newborns by 2030.
- Under it, counties will build and strengthen their national institutions, identify quality of care focal points at all levels of the health system.
- They will also accelerate and sustain the implementation of quality-of-care improvement packages for mothers, newborns and children.
- They will also strengthen capacity and motivation of health professional to plan and manage quality improvement, improve data collection and increase access to medicines, equipment, clean water and supplies.
- The network will also build a community of health practitioners from facility level and develop evidence-based strategies to improve quality of care, harvest implementation ideas, and collect information and experiences about what is working.
Background
According to World Health Organisation (WHO), the period around childbirth is the most critical for saving mothers and newborns, and preventing stillbirths. Every year, around 303 000 women die during pregnancy and childbirth worldwide, 2.7 million babies die during the first 28 days of life and 2.6 million babies are stillborn. Most of these deaths can be prevented with quality care during pregnancy and childbirth.
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Month: Current Affairs - February, 2017