Peter Dada
80 birth attendants in public hospitals have been trained by the Ondo State Government on strategies and skills to prevent maternal morbidity and mortality.
The initiative was part of the state government’s effort to prevent maternal mortality and also boost the efficiency and productivity of TBAs in child delivery.
The workshop, which was held at Bolorunduro, the headquarters of the Ondo East Local Government Area on Thursday was organized by the Ondo State Primary Health Care Development Agency, for health practitioners.
Speaking at the event, the Head of Department, Obstetrics, and Gynaecology, University of Medical Sciences, Ondo, Dr Oladiran Ayodeji, said the workshop would enhance the skills of TBAs.
He noted that the most common causes of maternal mortality are “hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (42.9 per cent) and sepsis (42.9 per cent), while postpartum haemorrhage (PPH) was responsible for 14.2 per cent of maternal deaths.”
Dr Ayodeji, however, said the continuous monitoring of the implementation of Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response recommendations at the primary health centres was a necessity.
He said, ” These actions are more likely to halt the progression of near-miss to maternal mortality. The healthcare-seeking behaviour of women in the community must be improved through advocacy, and the enlistment of community leaders is assured through periodic outreach interactions with different strata of the community.
“The issue of maternal mortality is a worldwide problem, but most of it comes from Nigeria, and our country is now becoming an embarrassment to itself and the whole world. It is not that we can’t take care of or solve this problem.
“We can’t continue to stay in the teaching hospitals, hoping and thinking that the problem of death that we see in the teaching hospitals will just go away. Patients that die come from our community and that is why we are engaging our health workers from the grassroots now.”
Declaring the one-day workshop open, the Head of Local Government Administration in Ondo East LGA, Mrs. Busola Adufe, lauded the organiser for the workshop, noting that the training would help the participants to know their jobs better.
She added, “The purpose of the workshop is to teach their health practitioners how to prevent maternal morbidity and mortality in the health system of Ondo State.
One of the participants and a nurse, Oluwatosin Akomolafe, expressed appreciation to the coordinator for holding the workshop, saying it would improve their performance at work.
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